Annual Armed Forces Day Crossband Test to Be Conducted May 10
The Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard are
co-sponsoring the annual Military/Amateur Radio Crossband
Communications Test in celebration of the 58th anniversary of Armed
Forces Day (AFD). Although the actual Armed Forces Day is celebrated
on the third Saturday in May -- May 17 in 2008 -- the AFD
Military/Amateur Crossband Communications Test will be conducted on
May 10 to prevent conflict with the Dayton Hamvention, scheduled
for May 16-18.
The annual celebration features traditional military to amateur crossband communications SSB voice tests and copying the Secretary of Defense message via digital modes. These tests give Amateur Radio operators and short wave listeners an opportunity to demonstrate their individual technical skills and to receive recognition from the Secretary of Defense and/or the appropriate military radio station for their proven expertise. QSL cards will be provided to those stations making contact with the military stations. Special commemorative certificates will be awarded to anyone who receives nd copies the digital Armed Forces Day message from the Secretary of Defense.
Military-to-Amateur crossband operations will take place on the dates and time in UTC on the frequencies listed for each station on the Army MARS Web site. Voice contacts will include operations in single sideband voice (SSB). Some stations, depending on propagation and manning, may not operate the entire period. Participating military stations will transmit on selected Military MARS frequencies and listen for Amateur Radio stations in the Amateur bands. The military station operator will announce the specific amateur band frequency being monitored. Duration of each voice contact should be limited to 1-2 minutes.
The schedules and frequencies of participating military stations are published on the Army MARS Web site , with the exception of the following changes and additions:
STATION: AAZ (HQ Army MARS Gateway, Fort Huachuca, Arizona)
| Frequency | Mode | Date | Time |
| 6988.0 kHz | RTTY | 11 May | 0110Z |
| PACTOR FEC | 11 May | 0130Z | |
| MT63 | 11 May | 0220Z | |
| PSK-31 | 11 May | 0250Z |
| Frequency | Mode | Date | Time |
| 14402.0 kHz | RTTY | 11 May | 0110Z |
| PACTOR FEC | 11 May | 0130Z | |
| MT63 | 11 May | 0220Z | |
| PSK-31 | 11 May | 0250Z |
STATION: WAR (Pentagon ARC/MARS Station, Arlington, Virginia)
| Frequency | Mode | Date | Time |
| 6988.0 kHz | RTTY | 10 May | 1700Z |
| RTTY | 10 May | 2300Z | |
| MT63 | 10 May | 1715Z | |
| MT63 | 10 May | 2315Z |
| Frequency | Mode | Date | Time |
| 14440.0 kHz | PACTOR FEC | 10 May | 1700Z |
| PACTOR FEC | 10 May | 2300Z | |
| Oliv ia | 10 May | 1715Z | |
| Olivia | 10 May | 2315Z |
Stations copying the Secretary of Defense message transmitted from AAZ / WAR should send their entries to Armed Forces Day Celebration, Commander NETCOM/9th ASC, Attn: NETC-OPE-MA (MARS) (31), Fort Huachuca, AZ 85613-5000.