Brian Lloyd, WB6RQN, is scheduled to take off from Miami, Florida, on June 1 on a solo, round-the-world flight to commemorate Amelia Earhart’s attempt to circumnavigate the globe 80 years ago. Lloyd will be on the air from Spirit, his single-engine Mooney 231 aircraft, during the course of his journey, expected to take 2 months. He will follow Earhart’s historic route to fly around the globe at the equator, starting in Miami, skirting the Caribbean islands, then passing along the coast of South America before heading across the Atlantic.
“I am driven by the spirit of historic flights,” Lloyd said before leaving his Texas airstrip for Miami. “It is important to remember the aviation pioneers like Amelia Earhart and their contributions to aviation. Their bold actions made today’s air travel possible for all of us.”
In late May, severe weather on the Atlantic route and aircraft equipment problems forced Lloyd to call off his New York-to-Paris seed flight. “There was only a short window of time that the flight could have happened, and the window has now closed,” a May 22 announcement said.
Lloyd will be on the air using HF SSB on or about 14,210.0 kHz, 14,346.0 kHz, 18,117.5 kHz, or 7,130.0 kHz. Onboard he has a Mobat Micom-3 transceiver, which puts out about 125 W. His antenna is under the fuselage. He also will utilize ALE (automatic link establishment) on the Amateur Radio HFLINK frequencies.
“The flight route has some very long legs, so I will have plenty of opportunities during June and July to talk with ham operators while flying over the world’s oceans,” said Lloyd, 62, who has been licensed since 1976 but has been flying since 1968.
To give his 1979 Mooney aircraft additional range, he modified it to carry 150 gallons more fuel. He’s also equipped it with modern navigation equipment, long-range radio, and satellite communication gear. Since the flight involves some risk, special safety gear is part of his equipment ensemble.
In addition to being a pilot, Lloyd is a flight instructor and educator. He lives near San Antonio. His commemorative flight is co-sponsored by The Classic Aircraft Aviation Museum, a non-profit in Texas, and by individual contributions.
Source:ARRL
Digital Modes
The motto of the new European Radio Amateurs’ Organization (EURAO https://www.eurao.org/) Summer Party https://www.eurao.org/en/node/1045 is “Premiering FT4.” This is not a contest but an on-the-air radio gathering with so... Read more
News
IARU Secretary David Sumner, K1ZZ, Offers Amateur Radio Perspective on WRC-19
Writing in a special World Radiocommunication Conference 2019 (WRC-19) edition of ITU News Magazine, International Amateur Radio Union (IARU) Secretar... Read more
ARRL Puerto Rico Section and Red Cross Renew Memorandum of Understanding
The American Red Cross Puerto Rico Chapter renewed its Memorandum of Understanding with the ARRL Puerto Rico Section on October 10, citing mutually be... Read more
PACTOR Developer SCS Announces Monitoring Software
SCS, the company that created PACTOR, has unveiled software that offers the ability to monitor the content of PACTOR 1, 2, and 3 transmissions over th... Read more
Amateur Radio Emergency Data Network Employed to Monitor California Wildfires
Two separate groups took advantage of the Amateur Radio Emergency Data Network (AREDN) to monitor wildfires in California. The Mariposa Area Amateur R... Read more
CE9/SQ1SGB shortly at Halley VI (WAP GBR-37)
Seba SQ1SGB has informed to leave on mid December 2019 to Antarctica. He will sign CE9/SQ1SGB and will stay at Halley VI Base (WAP GBR-37). Seba has... Read more
Apply now to run GB19YOTA
Youngsters on the Air (YOTA) Month takes place each December to encourage youngsters to get on the air and to learn more about the practical side of t... Read more
IC-9700 ’s new firmware has been released.
This makes it possible to send, receive and show pictures by the IC-9700 itself. Pictures stored on your smartphone or other device can be sent thro... Read more
Japan introduced its entry level Class 4 licence
Japan introduced its entry level Class 4 licence in the the late 1950’s, it would prove to be the world’s most successful category of amat... Read more
Hawaii ARES Leverages Contest Station and Winlink for 2019 Simulated Emergency Test
ARES volunteers in Hawaii took the opportunity of the 2019 Simulated Emergency Test (SET) on October 6 (UTC) to test Winlink radio messaging to the US... Read more
Lynyrd Skynyrd Founding Member Larry Junstrom, K4EB, SK
Southern Rocker Larry “LJ” Junstrom, K4EB, died on October 6. He was reported to be 70. Junstrom was a founding member and bassist of Lynyrd Skynyrd,... Read more