To day there are beacons spread across the 500 khz band, some normal CW
speed and others vy slow QRS 3 and slower this is not the way to co-exist,
one mode interfering with the other, especially beacons operators who are
not listening and hampering CW QSO ACTY.
Some sort of system is required. My suggestion to OFCOM would be to make the
band CW only like it has been in the past when used by the Marine service,
then consider other modes after a year or so.
The band is similar in so many ways to 160 metres, where CW is the
predominant mode and SSB permitted because of the wider bandwidth, but the
band is used in a sensible way with CW at the bottom end and SSB further up
the band.
Because the EA stn is listening for daytime propagation I was interested in
putting on a beacon at normal CW speed 8 WPM but do not want to cause QRM
with the present lack of a SYSTEM. I would suggest the top end of 500 might
be the most appropriate area. 503.5 - 504 khz.
G3KEV
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