20 meter contact with Falcon 2000 at 43,000 ft

Here I am on 20 meters rag chewing with K6AER and N0SP. N0SP was working from the flight deck of a Falcon 2000 jet at 43,000 ft. above Florida. The aircraft is equipped with 2 HF collins transceivers @ $30,000 a piece. When first heard, N0SP was 59 plus 20, and down to 55 at the end. My 20 year old son Andy was in the shack and wanted to say hello to N0SP. N0SP was very nice to my son, and the contact just made our day. 73 N0SP, and thanks for the great contact!

Category:

Entertainment

Tags:

• ham
• radio

[maciejwrotek]

What is collins transceiver ? Never heard of it

[mamatalu]

You can communicate with airplanes?? I guess the person on board must also have license and a call, correct? I had no idea that they could use flight HF radio for amateur contacts! Holy Cupcakes! I gotta get my general ticket soon, man!!

How did you happen to make this contact? Which frequency range were you working? I have no HF experience.

[lysippus]

@lysippus \\  sorry, in Calgary

[lysippus]

You were speaking with the director/Chairman of Molson , RBC, and EnCana--likely on his commute to work in Toronto.

[scottishsanny]

I worked Casey... cant remember the call aeronautical mobile a few years ago.. he worked for the RCAF... and was using an alfa tango call...

[bullzisnipr3]

So doesn't that tell you something about aerial stations? Transmitting from 43,000 ft and getting that quality is pretty impressive.

Keep in mind all the ambient noise an aircraft has.

[QuincyCHL]

I thing you put AGC control on fast position on the ts440s. I use on slow position for voice comms and get better audio reception.

[felipeceglia]

35 thousand dollars, and such a crappy audio.

all aerial mobile stations I talked to had crappy audio, no exception.

[tperry2]

Wow, that's cool. He never said the model of HF XCVR in the aircraft except made by Collins. 718U maybe? Only because they are certified TSO'd for installation in an aircraft and made by Rockwell Collins are they as expensive as he said. I have worked on that model radio, and they are no better than the top amateur model HF xcvrs. Terry-AE5EH