[net.ham-radio] Radioing India

jayaram@amdcad.UUCP (Jayaram Kalpathy) (10/16/85)

I have a friend in India who is a ham-radio enthusiast and I 
wanted to find out what it takes to start communicating with
him over ham-radio.

Does anybody know:
1) Is it possible to communicate with India over ham ? I'm
   on the west coast of the U.S. near San Francisco.
2) What kind of equipment would I require to establish a
   reliable link ?
3) What does it take to get started ?

Thanks in advance!

Jayaram Kalpathy. ucbvax!amdcad!jayaram

scott@hpuslma.UUCP (10/20/85)

I definitely think that amateur radio is a good way to communicate with your
friend in India.  80, 40, and 20 meter bands should easily offer you the 
frequencies to do just that.  I just recently obtained my Technician class
license after letting my General license expire many years ago, and one of my
intentions is to be able to talk to other countries.

A good way to begin is to buy some of the ARRL license manuals and radio 
handbooks and some of the monthly magazines like QST, Ham Radio, etc.  These 
documents will give you a feel for the events, equipment, and requirements for
licensing.  You can also find most of these items in local libraries too.

By the way, I am a Sales Eng. for Hewlett Packard here in St. Louis.  What are
you busy pursuing in the San Francisco area?  Also, if I can provide further 
assistance on your Ham endeavors, please let me know.

Jim 
N0GLP
:x