W.W.A.R.A.–GeneralMeetingMinutesFeb22,2020

KennyRichards–KU7M RobChatham–AF7PR SteveVanWambeck,N9VWDoyleWenzel,N7UJK FrankWolf–NM7R RichSalter–KF7BJIAlanFerguson–N7OMS HowardWilhelm–K7UID MikePing–N3KPU

Absences:RobSalsgiver–NR3O,ScottHonaker–N7SSInaccordancewithArticleIX,Section3aofthebylaws,aquorumwaspresent.Themeetingwascalledtoorderat10:04amattheTukwilaFireStation#51.IntroductionsweremadeandbyamotiontheminutesoftheDecember07,2019generalmeetingwasapproved,aspostedonthewebsite.Officer’sReports

TreasurerReport:• Fulldetailsareavailableuponrequest.• Currentassetstotal$15,436.79

SecretaryReport:

• AllTDSreceivedpriortoFeb20havebeenprocessed.• AllCertificatesofCoordination’sapprovedinthelastthreemonthsweree-mailedonFeb21.• Duetothenumberofsystemsbeingcoordinatedinthenext15-20days,aspecialsecondrunof

certificateswilloccuraroundChristmas.• Aremindere-mailhasbeensenttoallexpiredandabouttoexpire(within3months)

coordination’s.Additionally,allofthenon-publishedlinkcoordination’sarebeingreminded,sincetheyhavenothadaexpirednotificationforseveralyears.

• Therearesixcoordination’swhichexpiredmorethan12monthsago,havebeennotifiedatleasttwiceandhavenotrenewed.TheyreceivedafinalnoticeandwillbecanceledonMarch7th,2020ifnotrenewed.Thesixcoordination’sare:

o 53.15/K7CRo 53.09/WB7OXIo 53.87/W7SIXo 146.86/W7RDRo 441.2625/KF7UUYo 442.525/WR7V

CommitteeReports

IACC/BCARCC/ORRC• ORCC–Steve-N9VWcreatedavisualmapofthesouthernWWARAborder,whichisconfusingfor

peopletounderstandfromthedescriptioninthecoordinationpolicies.Kenny-KU7MwillsharethemapwiththeORCC,sotheycanprovideinputandhopefullyagreeitdescribestheirnorthernborder.

6/10Meters–FrankWolfe,NM7R• Noactivity

2Meters–PeterDahl,WA7FUS• Threependingapplications• Oneinpubliccommentperiod(147.995),twoareunknownstatus(147.4125,147.4375)• Seeattachedbandreport

220–PeterDahl,WA7FUS• Fiveactiveapplications• Threeintesting,oneoutforcommentperiodandonestillproposed(seeattachedbandreport)

440/430Repeaters&Links–SteveVanwambeck,N9VW• 17applicationbeingtracked• Fouroutforpubliccomment,fourintesting,twoinholding(resolvingtechnicalissuesatsite),

sevennewproposedsystems.900/1.2Ghz–ScottHonaker,N7SS

• Onepending(927.850Buckley,W7AAO)

OldBusiness• UpdateonNarrowbandProposalfor2m/70cm,KU7M,N7SS,N9VW,K7SLB

o Attacheddocumentisthecurrentversion,whichnowincludes1Mhzofthe440bandmapping.

o ~10%of70cmarealreadynarrowbando KU7MhasreceivedrequeststospeakaboutthenarrowbandplanandWWARA

coordinationprocess.HehasalreadyspoketoonegroupinFebruaryandisscheduledtospeaktotwomoregroupsinthenextcouplemonths.InadditiontobeingpartofaseriesoftalksatCommAcademy2020.

NewBusiness

• ConfirmingthemeetinglocationsfortheWWARA2020meetings.PerthedecisionmadeduringtheDecembermeeting,thisyeartheWWARAmeetingwillmovearoundthestatetohopefullyattractmoreinvolvement.

o Feb22–Tukwila(currentmeeting,hostedbyKU7M)o May23–PaineField(hostedbyN7SS)o Sept26–Tacoma(exactlocationstillbeingdetermined,hostedbyAF7PR)o Dec5–BacktoTukwilaunlesssomeonevolunteersadifferentlocationPP

AdjournMeeting:12:04PMNextMeeting:May23,2020/PaineField,DEM/Time:10am–12pm

2 meters and 220 Band Chair report February 2020

TR# Frequency Trustee Location Status3226 147.4125 AF7PR ARIEL Status unknown3227 147.4375 NA7Q CHINOOK Status unknown3231 147.995 KU7M COUGAR In comment period4093 223.9 W7PFB CARNATION Testing4094 223.96 WA7TBP CARNATION Testing4092 224.2 W7TJL GIG HARBOR In comment period4095 224.22 K7RGK BLAINE Proposed4089 224.82 AF5TR ANACORTES Testing

440 Band Chair Report Status Submitted by N9VW Followup5381 443.250_KE7GFZ_Duval_5381_20191221.pdf Testing 12/20/19 01/05/20 KGR - Relocated 440 system, requiring re-coordination. On air, recommend testing period 3m. 3/20/20

5563 440.925_W7BU_Megler_5563_20190927.pdf Member Comment Period02/15/20

10/14/19: KGR - Relocated 440 system, changed antenna type, height and power ERP, need to retest. recommend 3m test period01/31/20: SvW - Sent follow up request for end of testing period. Replied all good, started poll02/15/20: SvW - Polling complete, Member comment period

2/29/20

5707 443.525_K7SLB_Cougar_5707_20180122.pdf Holding 12/10/19

01/29/18:KGR - Proposed P25/Analog repeater on Cougar. ETA 6/1/1812/02/19: SvW - Inquiry for status sent12/10/19: SvW - Spencer replied that the machine had gone up on the air, was experiencing an IM issue and has had a failure that is in process of being fixed. 01/31/20: SvW - Sent a request for status.

2/7/20

5714 442.000_NE7MC_Kenmore_5714_20180719.pdf Holding 12/04/19

7/19/18: KGR - Relocated from LkForestPark, with brand new rptr. Treating as new coordination. on air 7/19/187/25/18: KGR Got note from Jon. Repeater hardware failed, sent back to Bridgecomm to fix. Will provide neweta for back on air.10/15/18: KGR - Still waiting for hardware and site access. recommend leaving pending until six months up andcancel if not ready for testing. Can re-submit when issues resolved.12/02/19: SvW - Inquiry for status sent12/04/19: SvW - From Carl: The 442.000 repeater is currently located at 7220 NE 181st Kenmore (Northshore Fire Station 51). We are currently awaiting the completion of a construction project at 8204 NE 150th ST. The project has taken longer than we expected but is scheduled for completion at by December 31st.12/31/19: SvW - Checked with Carl for status. No repsonse so far.02/12/20: KGR - says opererational, but not final antenna. ETA 3/15/20 - Provided another TDS

3/15/20

5725 443.825_AA7MI_PortTownsend_5725_20181114.pdf Work in progress, not on the air

11/22/18: KGR: Added TDS, ETA on air April 201912/04/19: SvW - Inquiry for status sent, response from Richard:We have a 20mw DMR hot spot on the air at the tower as a DMR placeholder. We are planning a full DMR repeater very soon. We were waiting for the internet link to the site which is now available. Please keep this active.

3/4/20

5727 440.750_K6MBY_Sequim_5726_20181230.pdf Member Comment Period 02/15/20

12/30/18: KGR: Added TDS, on air now.6/26/19: KGR was approved by BoD and went to public comment period. Issue was raised that running DR1x in wideband modeand shouldn't be in digital narrowband only channel. 10/2/19 KGR: Got an update from K6MBY. He has been unable to make DMR mode work in narrowband mode and also discoveredrepeater doesn't work in C4FM mode or narrowband FM analog. Sending back for repairs.10/18/19: SvW - Notified that the system is now running on a pair of narrowband Motorola radio's, this is the final configuration.01/31/20: SvW - Pinged for testing status, reply was testing OK, no complaints. Started poll02/15/20: SvW - Polling complete, Memeber comment period

2/29/20

5732 441.125_WA7OS_GraysHarbor_5732_20190614.pdf Member Comment Period 02/15/2006/14/19: KGR Added TDS, not on air, ETA 09/01/201911/16/19: KGR/SvW - On air 10/19/19, started testing phase 01/31/20: SvW - Pinged for testing status, indicated testing complete, no complaints. Started poll02/15/20: SvW - Polling complete, Memeber comment period

02/29/20

5735 444.2375_Snohomish_K7LKA_5735_20190619.pdfWork in progress, on the air, not ready for testing period

07/06/19: KGR Added TDS, not on air, ETA 12/01/201912/04/19: SvW - Inquiry for status sent, Steven responded that the machine is still in construction phase01/31/20: SvW - Inquiry sent for status. Operating at low level elevation and power. Waiting on weather to raise up to final height

3/2/20

5737 442.300_W7ACS_Seattle_5737_20190728.pdf Testing 02/02/2020

08/11/19: KGR Added TDS, not on air, ETA 09/01/201908/11/19: E-mail thread between N7LYE and NC7Q about 442.300. NC7Q is going to move DMR repeater currentlyon 442.300 to 440.7625, co-channeling with SeattleACS dstar repeater. This will open up 442.3 for SACS group.11/27/19: SvW - Mark, N7LYE, advised on-air 11/20/1911/28/19: KGR - confused, 443.200 has been on the air since 11/20/19 see 5742, 442.300 is scheduled for 1/1/2001/31/20: SvW - Pinged Mark for on air status02/02/20: SvW - Machine is on the air, testing phase started.

04/26/20

5738 441.850_KE7GFZ_Duvall_5738_20190815.pdf Work in progress, not on 08/15/19: KGR Added TDS not on air, ETA 2/29/2020 03/01/20

5739 440.975_W7AW_Seattle_5739_20190817.pdf Member Comment Period 02/21/20

08/23/19: KGR Added TDS, system on the air and ready for testing period12/09/19: SvW - Randy indicates testing period is complete but the radio is currently off the air. Waiting for the system to be restarted before sending to poll12/31/19: SvW - Randy indicates no site access, another two weeks for resolution.01/23/20: SvW - Pinged Randy for status 01/31/20: SvW - 2nd ping to Randy, he responded that he was gaining site access on Tuesday (02/04/20) to fix the machine.02/16/20: SvW - Randy noted that repeater is fixed, testing period is now complete02/21/20: SvW - Polling complete, member comment period

3/6/20

5740 441.9500_KF7CFR_LymanHill_5740_20190904.pdf

Work in progress, on the air lo level Mt VernonHolding for site access, snowed in

9/04/19:KGR Added TDS, system expected to be on the air by 2/1/202001/31/20: SvW - Pinged to see if on the air. Operating at low level in Mt. Vernon. Cannot access mountain until the snow melts.

5/31/20

5741 442.7500_WA7SV_Bellingham_5741_20191101.pdfTesting12/04/19 11/11/19: KGR added TDS, not on air, ETA 12/30/201912/04/19: SvW - Notified by Thomas that the machine was on the air and ready for testing 03/04/20

5742 443.200_W7ACS_Seattle_4742_20191125.pdf Testing 11/20/19 11/28/19: KGR added TDS, on air as of 11/20/2019 2/20/2019

5743 440.575_WA7FI_FoxIsland_5743_20191209.pdf Work in progress, not on 12/12/19: KGR added TDS, ETA on air 06/01/2020 6/2/205745 442.625_KJ7HML_Darrington_5745_20200121.pdf Work in progress, not on the 01/21/20: KGR added TDS, not on air, ETA 02/01/2020. Missing DSQ code for Fusion side 02/02/205746 444.900_W6MPD_PortAngeles_5746_20200128.pdf Operational, but no ETA for 01/28/20: KGR added TDS, says operational, but with no ready date. 02/20/20

KU7M,N7SS,N9VW,K7SLB February21,2020 Page 1

TakingtheNextStep–AproposalfortheWWARAtomovetonarrowbandPart97,subpartB-StationOperationStandardsreads:

(b) Each station licensee and each control operator must cooperate in selecting transmitting channels and in making the most effective use of the amateur service frequencies. No frequency will be assigned for the exclusive use of any station.

OnecouldarguethattheWWARAmovingtonarrowbandchannelsforrepeateroperationsisarequirementoratleaststronglysuggestedbytheFCCforAmateurs.BackgroundTherepeaterlandscapehasundergoneasignificantchange,whichreallybeganin2005whenIcomreleasedthefirstdigitalmoderadiosdesignedspecificallyforAmateurradio.Whileotherdigitalmodesthatoriginatedfromthecommerciallandmobilemarkethadbeenexperimentedwith,DSTARwasthefirsttogainwidespreadAmateuracceptance.Whileothermodeshaveexisted,onlyDMRhasapproachedtheinitialsuccessasDSTARhereinwesternWashington.WhiletheWWARANarrowbandCommitteehavebeenunabletofinddatatosupporttheclaim,webelievethatoverallrepeaterusagehasdeclinedoverthelast10years.Usingjusttherandomsampleofscanningalltheavailable2mand70cmrepeaterswhiledrivingtoworkfromvariouslocationsaroundthePugetSound,webelievetherehasbeena50%ormoredropoffsincethemid-2000’s.Thereareexceptionsofcourse,somerepeatersintheareaareveryactive,withmultipledailynetsandregularQSO’shappeningalldaylong.Anotherinterestingfactisthatwhiletheusageofrepeatersisdeclining,thenumberofrepeaters,atleastinwesternWashingtonisincreasing.TheWWARAlistofcoordinatedsystemshasincreased28%since2013.Thenumberofdigitalrepeaters(definedasDSTAR,DMR,Fusion,NXDNandP25)hasincreasedoverthesameperiodby77%.Basedpurelyonnewlycoordinatedsystems,thedesiretoinstalladigitalrepeaterisfaroutpacinganalog.Itisasimplefactthatmostofthecoordinated2mrepeatersinwesternWashingtonarestillwideanalogFMsystems(asdefinedby5kHzdeviationor16kHzoccupiedbandwidthor16K0F3EFCCemissionmask),thesamebasictechnologythatwasdeployedinthe1970’s.Therearemanyadvantagestoit,includingthewidelyavailableequipmentandfairlysimpleoperation/setup.ButthispaperisaboutconsideringwhatcomesnextforAmateurrepeatersinwesternWashington.TheFCCforcedthelandmobilemarket(ofwhichmostoftherepeaterequipmentAmateursusescomesfrom)togotosomeformofnarrowbandinJanuary2013,whichwasannouncedin2007.Allcommercialuses(withcertainexceptions)wererequiredtomovefrom25kHzchannelsto12.5kHzchannels.Althoughnotrequiringit,theFCCalsoannouncedafuturemovetothe6.25kHzwideUltra-narrowbandatsomepointinthefuture.Formany,thismeantmakingthemovefromwidebandFMtoaultra-narrowbandoptionupfrontwouldavoidasecondtransitionlater.ThisallowedsystemslikeNXDN(6.25kHzwide)andP25/DMR(12.5kHztwotimeslotTDMA)tobecomeapopularcommercialoptions.OnlyAM/SSBandACSSBwouldmeet6.25kHzcriteriaviaanalog,makingthedigitaloptionsincreasinglyimportant

KU7M,N7SS,N9VW,K7SLB February21,2020 Page 2

Oneofthedrawbacks,whichwereoutlinedinanFCCdocumentpublishedaroundthetimeoftheannouncementforshiftingtonarrowband,wastheimpactwhennarrowinganalogsignalsfrom5kHzto2.5kHzdeviation.Withthereductionindeviationwhengoingtonarrowband,itisestimatedtoalsodecreasethesignaltonoiseby3dB,thiswasestimatedtomeanalossof30%repeatercoverage,withoutanincreaseinERPtocompensateforit.FromtheFAQintheFCCdocument:

IthasbeenestimatedthatNarrowbandcompliancecanresultina3dBlossinsignalstrength.However,thisruleofthumbisbasedupona“plainvanilla”Narrowbandingscenariowhere25kHzanalogsystemconvertstoa12.5kHzanalogsystem.Consultwithamanufacturerand/orconsultingengineerforabetterestimateofhowNarrowbandingwillaffectyourparticularsystem.

ItshouldbenotedthattherepeatercoverageissuedescribedintheFCCdocumentwillnotbeuniversalforrepeaterslocatedinthePugetSoundarea.ManyoftheWWARAcoordinatedrepeatersystems,specificallythelowlevelsystems,arealreadylimitedincoverageduetoterrainissues.Thisissuewillhavethemostimpacttothosehigh-levelsystems,whichhavecoverageoverlargegeographicalareas.Whataretheoptions?Theobviousoneissimplyincreasingthepowerofradios.Thatmightbedoableattherepeaterside,butwhatabouttheotherendofthesystem?ItwouldmeanalltheHT’sinusewillalsoneedtodoubletheirpower,whichmeansareductionofusagetimeduetobatterycapacityorevenlargerantennas.Theotheroption,whichisn’tcalledoutdirectlyintheFCCdocuments,ismovingtoadigitalsignal.Allofthecurrentdigitalsolutionsleveragehighqualitycodec’sandbenefitfromforwarderrorcorrection(FEC).Thistechnologyallowssimilarcoverageofwidebandanalogsystems,butusingnarrowbandchannelsandsimilarERP.Giventhestateofthingstoday,whatshouldtheWWARAdo,tohelpmovetherepeatersystemsofwesternWashingtonforward?TheWWARAknowsthatouruserswanttoconstructmorerepeaters.TheWWARAknowsthereisalreadyastronginterestandadaptionfordigitalsolutions.TheNarrowbandCommittee’srecommendationistheWWARAbegindownthepathofrestructuringthebandplantoalignwiththisvision.Weknowitwon’thappenquicklyandthere

KU7M,N7SS,N9VW,K7SLB February21,2020 Page 3

willbemanywhowillgetveryupsetabouttheprospect.ButwebelievethisalignswiththeoverallmissionoftheWWARAandistherightthingto-do.Howwilltheshifthappen?ThisisjustathoughtexperimentbasedonvariousdiscussionsthathavebeentakingplaceamongtheWWARAboardandothergroups.Itisn’tmeanttobeadetailedplanandcertainlyneedsmoreresearchandinputfromothers.Whendevelopingaplan,itisbesttostartfromtheoutcomedesiredandworkbackwards.Tothatend,theNarrowbandCommitteehasbeenusingtenyearsasthepointwheretheWWARAhascompletelytransitionedtoanarrowbandplanfor2mand70cm.Thelogicbeingthatoneofthebiggestfactorsinthetransitionisthewidespreadadaptionofclientradiosthatsupportsnarrowband,whetherthatisanalogordigital.ItappearsthatmostAmateurradiosreleasedinthelasttenyearssupportsatleastanarrowbandanalogmode,whilemorethanhalfsupportatleastonetypeofdigitalmode.So,projectingouttenyears,itseemssafetoassumethatmostclientradiosinusewillsupportsomeformofnarrowband.Ifmostoftheclientradiossupportsomeformofnarrowbandalready,themajor‘cost’oftheswitchwillbefortherepeaterowners.Otherthananeedtoretunethefilteringtoadjusttothenewbandplan,thebiggestcostistheTX/RXsystems.TheoldreliableGEMastrIIsystemswillprobablyneedtobereplacedbysomethingmadeinthelastdecade.Wedon’thaveananswerforthis,otherthanthatiswhatwillneedtohappen.Basedonhistoricalpatterns,thecommerciallandmobilemarketwillalsobeturningoverandreplacingmanyofthefirst-generation(orsecond-generation)narrowbandsystematthispoint(whichisactuallyalreadyhappening).ThiswasthesourcefortheGEMastrIIsystems,soitislogicaltoassumeareadysupplyof‘cheap’repeatersystemsavailableonthemarketoverthenexttenyears.Thenexthurdleishowdowemovefromthecurrent20kHzchannelspacingto12.5kHz?ItisbesttoimaginethisasagiantgameofTetris.Aswideanalogsystemsarereplaced,itallowsthecreationofpocketsofnarrowbandchannels.Thecommonproposalisthatwhentwoadjacent20kHzchannelshavemovedtousingnarrowbandrepeaters,the40kHzofspectrumbeconvertedtothree12.5kHzchannels.NOTE:Therewasanearlierproposaltousetwo12.5kHzchannels,witha6.25kHzinbetweenthem.Thisproposalhadtheadvantageofoverlayingthecurrent20kHzchannelsexactly,butwhenitwasmappedout,thefrequencystepsdidn’twork.Mostexistingradioswouldn’tsupportthespacing.Thisleadthenarrowbandworkinggrouptocomeupwiththecurrentproposal.Thecompletemappingoftheexisting20kHzpairsto12.5kHzpairsforthe2mbandisincludedinAppendixAforreference.ThenarrowbandcommitteereviewedhowtheFCCapproachedthisandtakingthatpattern,appliedittothe2mrepeatersub-bands.Usingthe145.100Mhzrepeater

KU7M,N7SS,N9VW,K7SLB February21,2020 Page 4

sub-bandasanexample,three12.5kHzchannelswouldbecreatedinthespacecurrentlyused

forthe145.110and145.130Mhzwidebandpairs.Thediagramin Figure1providesavisualrepresentationoftheconversionofthefirstfourwidebandpairstothesixnewnarrowbandpairs.

Figure1:Widetonarrowbandconversion

Thissolutionwillcreate31narrowband(12.5kHz)pairs,wheretherearecurrently20widebandpairsinthe145repeatersub-band(145.1to145.5Mhz).Similarly,62narrowband(12.5kHz)pairswillbecreatedinthe146repeatersub-band(146.2-147.4Mhz).Asmentionedabove,thisapproachalignswiththespacingsupportedbyallthemodernradiosreviewed,whichsupportsatleastonetypeofnarrowbandmode.Oneofthedownsidesofthischanneltransitionisthe‘overlap’betweencurrentwidebandandnarrowbandgroups.Inpreviousproposals,oncetwowidebandpairswereavailableforconversion,itimmediatelycreatedthreenarrowbandchannels.Thatissometimesthecasewiththenewapproach,buttherearecaseswherethreewidebandchannelswillneedtobeconvertedbeforeallthreeofthenarrowbandchannelswillbecomeavailable.Asanexample,thenarrowbandchannelof145.4125isapartofthesetofthreechannelsthatmapstothe145.43and145.45widebandpairs,butanyrepeaterusingitwouldlikelycauseinterferencetotheexisting145.41Mhzwidebandpair.Whentheconversionofthesepairshappens,specialconsiderationwillneedtobegivenandpossiblythenarrowbandchannelwillbeunavailableuntilthethirdwidebandpairistransitioned.NarrowbandDigitalChannelsThelastnarrowbandchannelinthenewnarrowbandproposal(147.3875Mhz)overlapswiththesecondultra-narrowbanddigitalonlypair(147.3950Mhz)createdseveralyearsago.Aspartofthetransition,itisrecommendtheexistingultra-narrowbanddigitalonlypairwouldbereplacedwiththe147.3950Mhznarrowbandpair,whenthe147.38widebandpairisnolongerneeded.

KU7M,N7SS,N9VW,K7SLB February21,2020 Page 5

Similarlyitwasdiscoveredtheotherultra-narrowbanddigitalonlypair(146.005Mhz)isnotpracticalduetotheproximitytotheFMcross-bandlinkingfrequencyat146.600Mhz.AcoordinatedDSTARrepeateronthepairwasaskedtoterminateoperationduetotheinterferencewiththecross-bandlinkingfrequency.Itisrecommendedthisultra-narrowbanddigitalonlypairberemovedfromtheWWARAbandplan.Otherthanproposedchangestothetwoultra-narrowbanddigitalonlypairs(146.005and147.3950Mhz),nootherchangesaresuggestedorneededforthenarrowbandtransition.SharedNon-ProtectedChannelsThetwoSharedNon-Protected(SNP)pairs(145.13and145.29Mhz)willremainwide-bandpairs,untiltheir‘partner’converttonarrowband.(145.11/145.13and145.27/145.29)AtthattimetheSNPwillalsoconverttonarrowbandautomatically.Itisrecommendthattwoofthenewlycreatednarrowbandchannelsaredesignatedassharednon-protectedpairs..70cmBandTransitionUpuntilthispoint,thefocushasbeenonthe2mband.Thiswasdonebecausethe2mbandisthemostcompressedofanyoftheamateurrepeatersub-bandsintheWWARA.Inlate2016forthefirsttimeinWWARAhistory,therewereno‘free’repeaterpairsavailableinthe70cmband.Overtheyearsasrepeaterswereretired,afewfreepairshavebecomeavailableagain,butco-channelingisnowacommonoccurrence.Similartheseven70cmnarrowbanddigitalonlypairscreatedinJune2016arenow‘full’,withseveralhavingmultiplerepeatersco-channeling.Insomewaysthe70cmbandis‘ahead’ofthe2mbandwithregardtomovingtonarrowband,becausemostofthenewdigitalmodesystemswentto70cmfirst,becausetherewerenoavailablepairsinthe2mband.Thismeansahigherpercentageofexisting70cmrepeaterscouldimmediatelyswitchtoanarrowbandplan,withonlyslightchangesinfrequencies.Anothermajordifferenceisthe70cmbandisstillontheolder25Khzchannelspacing,whereasthe2mbandmovedto20Khzpairsdecadesago.ItisthebeliefoftheNarrowbandCommitteethatthere-channelingofthe70cmbandshouldfollowingtheapproachusedforthe2mband,buttheultimatepathittakestoreachthatpointmaydiffer.Apartialnarrowbandlayoutforthe70cmbandisincludedinAppendixB,infuturedraftstheentirerepeatersub-bandwillbeincluded.PossibleoptionsforthetransitionThissectionwillprobablybethemostcontroversial,butwehopeovertimesomeoftheseapproachescanbeimplemented,evenifnotimmediately.Usingtheten-yeardatefromtheabovethoughtexperiment,startingfiveyearsinthefuture,theWWARAcouldstopacceptingnew2mapplicationsforanysystemwhichisn’t12.5kHzorsmaller(whetherdigitaloranalog).Soexistingrepeaterownerswouldbeabletocontinuetorenewthein-placesystems,butanynewapplicationwouldneedtobenarrowband.Additionally,ifa2msystemmustre-coordinate(duetoasitemoveoranyotherexistingreasonwhichtodayrequiresre-coordination),thenewsystemwouldalsohavetobenarrowband.Aswideband2mchannelswerevacated,thenarrowbandpairswouldbecomeavailable,usingtheschemedescribedearlier.

KU7M,N7SS,N9VW,K7SLB February21,2020 Page 6

Thisprocessofwouldensureexisting2mwidebandrepeatersanduserswouldn’tbe‘forced’togonarrowband,butatthesametimeitwouldallowthenaturaltransitiontothenarrowbandchannels.Thereareothermoreaggressiveoptionsforthetransition,whichcenteraroundthegeneralthemeofsettingaspecificdateandrequiringallsystemstotransition.Thishasseveralproblemswithit,includingtheWWARAhavingnoauthoritytoforceasystemtrusteetochange.Thehopeisthatbyallowingownersandtheiruserstopickwhenthetransitionhappens,thechangewillbelessimpactful,eventhoughitwilltakelonger.ItisimportanttorememberthatthetechnologyAmateur’senjoyusingandexperimentingwithisgoingtocontinuetomoveforward.Tenyearsisalongtime,whichwillprobablybringmanyadvancesweareonlydreamingaboutrightnow.Itisevenpossibleamixtureofspread-spectrumtechnology,withthecontinuallyadvancingSDRsolutions,willremovetheneedsforcoordination’sofrepeatersalltogether.Asdescribedabovethe70cmbandisstartingfromadifferentplacethan2m,soitfollowsthatthetransitionoptionsmightalsobedifferent.CurrentlytheNarrowbandCommitteeisconsideringproposalsthatwouldmoreaggressivelytransitionpartofthe70cmrepeaterband,becausemoreoftherepeaterscurrentlycoordinatedarealreadynarrowbandandcanbeeasilyshiftedinfrequencywithare-tuningoftheduplexers.Arecentreviewshowedthatnearly20%ofthecurrent70cmrepeatercoordinationareforsystemswhicharealreadynarrowband,butusingtheolder25kHzchannelspacing.Aproposedfirststepforthe70cmbandistoidentifyapartofthe70cmrepeatersub-bandandimmediatelydeclareitnarrowband,meaningnownewwidebandcoordination’swouldbeaccepted.Thenbyworkingwithexistingrepeaterowners,theexistingwidebandrepeatersinthatsectionwouldbeswappedwithexistingnarrowbandrepeaters.Thishasthebenefitofimmediatelyopeningupadditional70cmrepeater(narrowband)pairswithonlyaminorinconveniencetoexistingrepeaterowners.

KU7M,N7SS,N9VW,K7SLB February21,2020 Page 7

AppendixA:ExistingandProposed2mBandChannelRaster

145.1100145.1300145.1500145.1700145.1900145.2100145.2300145.2500145.2700145.2900145.3100145.3300145.3500145.3700145.3900145.4100145.4300145.4500145.4700145.4900

145.1000145.1125145.1250145.1375145.1500145.1625145.1750145.1875145.2000145.2125145.2250145.2375145.2500145.2625145.2750145.2875145.3000145.3125145.3250145.3375145.3500145.3625145.3750145.3875145.4000145.4125145.4250145.4375145.4500145.4625145.4750145.4875

146.6200146.6400146.6600146.6800146.7000146.7200146.7400146.7600146.7800146.8000146.8200146.8400146.8600146.8800146.9000146.9200146.9400146.9600146.9800147.0000

146.6250146.6375146.6500146.6625146.6750146.6875146.7000146.7125146.7250146.7375146.7500146.7625146.7750146.7875146.8000146.8125146.8250146.8375146.8500146.8625146.8750146.8875146.9000146.9125146.9250146.9375146.9500146.9625146.9750146.9875

147.0000147.0200147.0400147.0600147.0800147.1000147.1200147.1400147.1600147.1800147.2000147.2200147.2400147.2600147.2800147.3000147.3200147.3400147.3600147.3800

147.0000147.0125147.0250147.0375147.0500147.0625147.0750147.0875147.1000147.1125147.1250147.1375147.1500147.1625147.1750147.1875147.2000147.2125147.2250147.2375147.2500147.2625147.2750147.2875147.3000147.3125147.3250147.3375147.3500147.3625147.3750147.3875

Existing New Existing New Existing New

KU7M,N7SS,N9VW,K7SLB February21,2020 Page 8

AppendixB:ExistingandProposed70cmBandChannelRaster(partial)Thefollowingshowsthejustonesegmentofthe70cmrepeatersub-bandandhowtheconversionwouldbeappliedtogofromthecurrent25kHzchannelspacingto12.5kHzchannels. Current Proposed

440.4625440.4750 440.4750

440.4875440.5000 440.5000

440.5125440.5250 440.5250

440.5375440.5500 440.5500

440.5625440.5750 440.5750

440.5875440.6000 440.6000

440.6125440.6250 440.6250

440.6375440.6500 440.6500

440.6625440.6750 440.6750

440.6875440.7000 440.7000

440.7125440.7250 440.7250

440.7375440.7500 440.7500

440.7625440.7750 440.7750

440.7875440.8000 440.8000

Current Proposed 440.0250 440.0125

440.0250 440.0375

440.0500 440.0500 440.0625

440.0750 440.0750 440.0875

440.1000 440.1000 440.1125

440.1250 440.1250 440.1375

440.1500 440.1500 440.1625

440.1750 440.1750 440.1875

440.2000 440.2000 440.2125

440.2250 440.2250 440.2375

440.2500 440.2500 440.2625

440.2750 440.2750

440.2875 440.3000 440.3000

440.3125 440.3250 440.3250

440.3375 440.3500 440.3500

440.3625 440.3750 440.3750

440.3875 440.4000 440.4000

440.4125 440.4250 440.4250

440.4375