CW OPs in VK suffer daily SSB QRM from radio amateurs who insist on using the 10115 to 10120 kHz area in particular, spoiling our various CW and Club activities on this popular part of the band. We suffer this on a daily basis. CW OPs do not wish to transmit on SSB to tell those stations to please QSY because:
- Often we do not have microphones
- CW OPs often pride on being 100% CW
- CW OPs disagree with wide band modes on 30m
- It should be obvious to the SSB user that we are there
The assymetrical nature of QRM between CW and SSB is not taken into account by the government media and communications authority in Australia which has shamelessly allowed wide band modes across the entire 30m band at the licensing level.
CW can be notched out in SSB receivers. CW is often not even heard, example: CW on 10120 will not be heard by USB on 10120. But USB on 10120 WILL be heard on CW 10120. This is because of the offset between receive and transmit frequency which is necessary for CW.
The fact that the Australian government has not taken this into account, needs to be corrected. The Wireless Institute of Australia has recently heard our complaints, but is not an authority, and is itself setting a bad example by allocating 10115 in the "Australian Band Plan" to WICEN, a defunct WIA emergency communication body that is no longer active.
On Sundays there are 4 different SSB broadcasts from the WIA on the 30m band.
The WIA has, after hearing our complaints, indicated that SSB users are requested to use 10125 to 10135 and during daylight hours only. This request has fallen on deaf ears, and SSB users continue to use the 10115-10120 part of the band in particular. This is why pressure is needed to get the government to do the right thing and disallow wide band modes from 30m.
As if that were not enough, we have Sri Lankan, Filipino and Indonesian pirates using SSB throughout the band too. VK authorities are doing nothing to complain about this situation either, since the number of CW operators in Australia (outside of contests) is not a high number, less than 1,000 or which perhaps only 200 are active on any regular basis.
We therefore require international pressure, reports of SSB QRM from neighbours such as ZL. Even then, in this part of the world, our numbers are small.
It is for this reason, and to prevent loss of 30m CW and narrow digital modes (above 10130) exclusivity, that we must be organized, world wide, in one group with one voice. We must also increase our usage of 30m in order to prevent further encroachment. Already the IARU even in Region 1 has dropped several 30m restrictions without justification for this.
30cw.net is a step in this direction, to give us a place where we can share information and assist in getting more active on 30m, to ensure that this very special and precious band continues to provide us pleasure as CW Operators, with a minimum of QRM.
The poor example of Australia heralds what is in store for the rest of the world, if we do not make more regular use of 30m! Thank you for supporting this effort by joining this site!