VECTOR April 2025 News

Posted in newsletter

Previous newsletters can be found in the archive.

VECTOR News

  • April Members' Meeting - April 2nd at 18:30

    The April members' meeting will take place on Wednesday, April 2nd, at 18:30 in the E-Comm Media Room. We encourage in-person participation, but you can also join remotely on Zoom.

    This month’s meeting will feature an update on preparations for Field Day and CERV decommissioning, as well as operational details about the Vaisakhi parade, and a review of handling lost/found persons and medical situation details over radio.

  • Vaisakhi Parade - April 12th at 9:00

    We’re still looking for a few more volunteers to come support the Vaisakhi parade on Saturday, April 12th in South Vancouver. Both all-day and half-day shifts are available. This event is one of VECTOR’s core responsibilities and commitments to our city partners.

    VECTOR will provide all the radio gear that you’ll need, and food will be provided for all volunteers. You can find shift details and sign up to help in Better Impact - Vaisakhi Parade.

Community News

  • Vancouver Sun Run - April 27th at 7:30

    The annual Sun Run relies on amateur radio volunteers from across the local area to provide communications support. VECTOR encourages its members to participate. You can sign up by filling out the 2025 Sun Run Radio Comms Volunteer Registration form.

  • Maple Ridge Swap Meet - May 4th at 10:00

    Maple Ridge Amateur Radio Club is holding their annual swap meet on May 4th at the Pitt Meadows Heritage Hall. This is one of the larger and busier swap meets in the region, and a great place to find radio equipment and accessories. More information can be found on the MRARC website.

Training & Practice Opportunities

  • Winlink Data & Packet Radio Practice - April 16th at 18:30

    Get hands-on with the Winlink radio email system and learn how to use your radio to send and receive messages from your laptop or phone. It’s best to bring your own radio and laptop, but VECTOR can provide radios and other equipment to practice with.

    Your goal by the end of the evening will be to have your very own Winlink account, know how to send and receive emails over radio, and be able to check-in to the VECTOR Net through packet data.

    You can find more information and signup in Better Impact - Winlink Data Night.

  • DSA Awareness - April 23rd at 18:30

    Come learn about the equipment that you might be asked to operate as part of a Disaster Staging Area. This training will help you understand the layout of a DSA, steps for setting up antennas and radio equipment, and other information you’ll need to support emergency communications after a disaster.

    You can learn more and sign up in Better Impact - DSA Awareness

Hands-On Opportunities

  • Monthly Emergency Communications Test - April 2nd at 9:30

    City of Vancouver will be conducting their monthly emergency communications test including DSA 4 on Wednesday, April 2nd, at 10:00. You can find more information and sign up in Better Impact - Monthly Radio Tests.

  • Emergency Preparedness Week: DSA Exercise - May 7th at 9:30

    City of Vancouver will be conducting their monthly emergency communications test on Wednesday, May 7th, and we have an opportunity to open multiple DSA containers as part of Emergency Preparedness Week. We need to know in advance how many people can attend so we know how many sites we can activate. You can sign up in Better Impact - Monthly Radio Tests.

  • Winlink to Win Week - early May

    Want to show off your Winlink skills and maybe win a prize? Watch for more details about VECTOR’s “Winlink to Win Week” contest in early May. You can practice ahead of time by coming to the Winlink hands-on practice session and checking in to the VECTOR night using Winlink each Wednesday night.

On-Air Nets

The weekly net takes place at 20:00 every Wednesday on the VE7RVF repeater (VECTOR channel 1, 145.450 MHz, -0.6 MHz offset, tone of 100.0 Hz). Each week, a secondary net follows on a different frequency, providing an opportunity for amateur radio operators to test their radio with other bands and modes of operation.

The schedule for upcoming secondary net frequencies is as follows:

Date Channel Frequency Information
April 2 7 147.450 Mhz simplex, tone 100.0 Hz
April 9 4 146.580 MHz simplex
April 16 2 145.170 MHz, -0.6 MHz offset
April 23 430 446.100 MHz simplex
April 30 401 443.725 MHz, +5 MHz offset, tone 88.5 Hz
May 7 44 146.430 MHz simplex

We encourage Winlink check-ins to the VECTOR net every week, just address your message to VA7EOC. Connect to VA7EOC-10 using simplex UHF on 441.025 MHz (VECTOR channel 420), or send your message through one of the other local Winlink gateways.

VECTOR also maintains a list of other local radio nets on our website.

Upcoming Meetings

The monthly VECTOR members' meeting is the first Wednesday of every month. The next 3 meeting dates are as follows:

  • April 2nd in the E-Comm Media Room at 18:30
  • May 7th
  • June 4th

We highly encourage attending in-person, but recognize that online participation is more accessible for some members. Look for a link to the Zoom online conference room in your email ahead of the meeting to join remotely. You can find more details about members' meetings and RSVP in Better Impact - VECTOR Members' Meeting.