VECTOR May 2026 News

Posted 1 May 2026 in newsletter

Previous newsletters can be found in the archive.

The first week of May is Emergency Preparedness Week and serves as a reminder to review emergency plans with your family, double check everything in your emergency kit, and familiarize yourself with what to do in an emergency. The provincial theme this year is “In it Together” focusing on resilience through community connections.

Check out these emergency preparedness resources, and look for ones for your local community:

• Canada Emergency Preparedness Week
• BC Emergency Preparedness Week

After any large-scale emergency or disaster, VECTOR encourages members to check-in on their radios on the VE7RVF repeater (channel 1). As practice, we encourage members to do this during emergency alert tests and exercises like the BC Shake-Out. VECTOR’s Emergency Activation Guide is a good resource that members should be familiar with.

VECTOR News

• May Members' Meeting - Wednesday, May 6^th, at 18:30

  The May members' meeting will take place on Wednesday at 18:30 in the E-Comm Media Room. You get to meet others and learn more about work going on in the radio room when you come in, but you can also join remotely on Zoom.

  This month’s meeting will include a recap of our work at Vaisakhi, more details about our Field Day plans, and soliciting feedback from VECTOR members about training, practice, and exercise opportunities.

  If you are planning to attend the meeting in-person at E-Comm, you must RSVP in Better Impact.

• Help Needed for Spectrum Analyzer Repair

  Norman VE7NWM is looking for someone familiar with the innards of a spectrum analyzer to help troubleshoot a 1997 IFR AN1820 analyzer with failed YIG calibration frequency circuits. If you have any expertise, or know where to find service manuals or schematic diagrams, please contact Darryl VA7DPO so he can put you in touch.

Upcoming Events

Mark your calendars now for these upcoming summer events:

The city has approved 1 evening of fireworks this summer, we still await a confirmed date. You’ll see more information about these events when we have it.

Hands-On Opportunities

• DSA Radio Communications Test - Wednesday, May 6^th, at 09:30

  As part of emergency preparedness week, Vancouver Fire will be sending Fire Prevention officers out to most of the DSA containers to participate in the monthly emergency radio communications test. This is an opportunity for VECTOR members to get hands-on with the radio equipment at their local DSA and support first responders.

  We are aiming to have enough volunteers in the morning to set up the VFRS Command Truck as well as DSAs 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6. (DSA 1 is still being renovated.)

  If you are available, please sign up in Better Impact - DSA Radio Tests.

• COMMS-1 Container Clean-Out - Saturday, May 9^th, at 13:00

  Ahead of Field Day and summer events, let’s take the opportunity to look at what’s in our storage container at Queen Elizabeth Park and see how we can better organize it. The plan is to meet at COMMS-1 and spend a few hours taking inventory and shuffling things around. Highly suggest bringing some work gloves.

  Let us know if you’re planning to join by signing up in Better Impact - Storage Container Work Party.

• World Cup Special Event Station: VB7F - June 11^th – July 19^th

  The 2026 World Cup will be hosted for the first time in 3 countries – Canada, Mexico and the United States. This will involve 16 host cities across North America with Vancouver being one of them. In support of Vancouver as a host city, a special event station Amateur Radio call sign has been assigned to the Vancouver Host City Radio Team and will be active June 11^th through July 19^th.

  The local group is currently looking for operators with access to transmitters within BC to help activate the VB7F callsign for much of the tournament period. It is anticipated that this unique call will create considerable interest amongst the Amateur Radio community worldwide as a result of the unique VB prefix. Notably, there are special QSL cards and participant certificates from all host cities for the event.

  For more information about the special event stations, you can visit the World Cup 2026 Special Event Station website.

  You can register to operate VB7F at the VB7F website. For questions, you can contact Hiroshi VA7LET.

Community News

• Wildfire/Emergency Preparedness Open House - Saturday, May 2^nd, at 10:30

  The Dunbar Earthquake and Emergency Preparedness neighbourhood group is holding an open-house about wildfire risk in Pacific Spirit Park and emergency preparedness on Saturday, May 2^nd. Several community groups will be there with booths and demonstrations, including VECTOR, MedVents, VFRS, FireSmart BC, and the Canadian Red Cross.

  You can find more event details on the DEEP website - Wildfire/Emergency Preparedness Open House.

• Maple Ridge Amateur Radio Swap Meet - Sunday, May 3^rd, at 10:00

  Maple Ridge Amateur Radio Club is holding their annual swap meet on May 3^rd 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 - Swap Meet.

• Pacific Forest Rally - June 5^th – 6^th in Merritt

  This annual motosport event is looking for amateur radio volunteers to staff positions along the race course and provide safety communications for the event. You can operate from the comfort of your own vehicle in a course blocker position, or in other static locations for the event. Shared accommodation for volunteers is paid by the organizers, and partial reimbursement options are offered for single occupancy or other accommodation arrangements.

  Radio operators are in high demand, you can sign up to volunteer at the Pacific Forest Rally volunteer website.

• Sea-Pac Ham Radio Convention - June 5^th – 7^th in Oregon

  Sea-Pac is the Pacific Northwest’s largest amateur radio convention, and the ARRL Northwestern Division Convention. It will run Friday through Sunday, June 5 to June 7 at the Seaside Convention Center, in Seaside, Oregon. There are activities for seasoned professionals and newly licensed operators, even for those who just want to learn more about trying out the technology, like kids and their parents. Take in workshops and seminars, shop exhibitor displays, discover flea market finds, get new ideas, have the chance to meet many other radio operators.

  You can find more details and registration information on the Sea-Pac website.

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:

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), simplex VHF on 145.600 MHz, or by sending your message through one of the other local Winlink gateways. The VA7EOC-10 gateway supports both AX.25 packet and VARA FM.

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 meeting dates are as follows:

• May 6^th in the E-Comm Media Room at 18:30
• June 3^rd in the E-Comm Media Room at 18:30
• July 8^th to be determined

We strongly 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.