The six-operator H44WA team is preparing to activate the Solomon Islands November 15-29, 2023. They will be operating three stations on 160-10M in CW, SSB, and FT8 from Guadalcanal—the largest of the Solomon Islands based on area (2,047 square miles). DX Engineering is a proud equipment sponsor of H44WA—see equipment provided below.
Located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean northeast of Australia, Guadalcanal (the principal island of the Guadalcanal Province) has a population of around 160,000 and is most famously known as the site of a significant World War II military campaign (Operation Watchtower) that was waged by American forces between August 1942 and February 1943 against Japanese troops.
H44WA team members are Robin, WA7CPA; Rob, N7QT; Jack, N7JP; Brian, N9ADG; Tom, NU7J; and James, KC7EFP. Sam, WC7Q, is an honorary member of H44WA.
The Solomon Islands ranked as the 76th most-wanted DXCC entity per Clublog as of October. Get up-to-date information on the DXpedition from H44WA’s website.
Equipment
Among other antennas that will be deployed on the island, W44WA will be using a DX Commander HF multi-band vertical antenna. Easy-to-deploy, strong, and rigorously tested DX Commander antennas are exclusively available in North America through DX Engineering.
W44WA will also be relying on the following gear provided by DX Engineering:
About BevFlex-4X
This versatile two-direction, low-band receiving antenna is an updated and improved version of the W8GNM design that uses only low-cost, low-loss RG-6 for the elements and the feedline of a reversible beverage antenna or reversible beverage on ground (BOG) antenna. It uses specially designed transformer units that allow the feedpoint unit to be placed anywhere along the length of the Reversible Beverage or BOG, instead of only at one end or the other.
BevFlex-4X Systems consist of one Feed Unit, two Terminator Units, and one Control Switch Unit. The Feed and Terminal Units are housed in NEMA-rated enclosures and use stainless steel hardware for maximum weather protection. BevFlex-4X components may be used to create a two-direction version of any one of these antennas, using a much shorter length of wire for the receiving element: EWE, Flag, or VE3DO Loop.
For enhanced reception in four directions, the BevFlex-4X/Q combines two sets of Terminator and Feed Units with the RAS-4 remote antenna switch to let you hear better in all four quadrants. The BevFlex-4X antennas can be any mix of Beverage, BOG, Flag, EWE, or VE3DO.
The active DXers at DX Engineering look forward to joining you in the H44WA pileups this November. Best of luck and 73!
