DX Engineering amateur radio gear plays a key role in 3D2Y Rotuma and XT2MD Burkina Faso ventures.
After more than two weeks of operating from Rotuma, the six-member on-island Rotuma 3D2Y Pacific Islands Group DXpedition team—bolstered by hams working remotely to make contacts via NextGen Rig-in-a-Box setups on the island—recorded more than 30,000 QSOs from Nov. 15-Dec. 2, 2024.
Located in the South Pacific Ocean, Rotuma is an 8.1-mile-long, 2.5-mile-wide volcanic island 401 miles north of Fiji.
Members of the DX Engineering team, already experienced at reaching Rotuma, were excited to join operators worldwide trying to put 3D2Y in their logbooks. View QSL cards from past Rotuma DXpeditions—from the collections of DX Engineering staff—here.
It’s highly likely that the island’s standing at #63 on Clublog’s DXCC Most Wanted List (when the DXpedition began in November) will take a precipitous tumble. Even more important, the activation provided younger operators—the future of ham radio—with invaluable experience in the DXing world.
The 3D2Y team was made up of Gregg, W6IZT; Dean, W2FQ; Nathan, K4NHW; Jamie, MØSDV (age 23); Connor, KD9LSV (age 23); and Lukas, LY7J (age 22).
DX Engineering is a proud sponsor of 3D2Y—one of many high-profile 2024 activations in which DX Engineering equipment played a pivotal role.
DX Engineering CEO Tim Duffy, K3LR, interviewed the on-island Rotuma team on Nov. 26, eleven days into their activation (see video below).
Gregg, W6IZT, said they had 20,000 QSOs in the log at the time of the interview despite an array of challenges, including voltage drops on the island, multiple generator issues, unexpected high winds during the CQ Worldwide CW Contest, and energy-sapping temperatures.
He offered high praise for the island-based operators who provided a range of problem-solving skills, the international team of 32 remote hams, the donated DX Engineering gear that was “working perfectly,” and the hams at DXE who make DXpeditions like 3D2Y possible.
Here’s a rundown of what DX Engineering provided to 3D2Y:
- DX Engineering RG-8X PL-259 Low-Loss 50-ohm Coax Cable Assemblies
- DX Engineering 400MAX PL-259 Low-Loss 50-ohm Coax Assemblies
- DX Engineering Coaxial RF Connector Adapters
- DX Engineering Maxi-Core® 20 Baluns and Feedline Chokes
- LDG Electronics RU-1:1 Unun
- Synthetic Textile Industries Antenna Support Rope
- WiMo Heavy-Duty Fiberglass Telescoping Masts
“We would like to thank our sponsors for making this project come to life—and thank you to the DX community for the QSOs made during our time here on Rotuma,” wrote Jamie, M0SDV, as the 3D2Y team prepared to leave the island.
XT2MD Burkina Faso
DX Engineering donated a range of equipment to the October/November 2024 14-member XT2MD Burkina Faso DXpedition, which logged more than 75,000 QSOs despite three days of being off the air due to electricity problems. Here’s DX Engineering-supplied gear that helped make the activation of this landlocked West African country (#123on the DXCC Most Wanted List) a success:
- DX Engineering RG-8X PL-259 Low-Loss 50-ohm Coax Cable Assemblies
- DX Engineering Coaxial RF Connector Adapters
- DX Commander Expedition Portable HF Multiband Vertical Antenna (below)
- Kelemen 160/80M Trap Dipole Antenna
- Mastrant Antenna Support and Guy Line Rope
- Buckmaster 80-75/40/20/17/12/10/6M OCF Dipole Antenna (below)
Coming Soon in 2025
Be sure to get on the air for these upcoming DX Engineering-sponsored DXpeditions:
- Marquesas, TX7N, Jan. 12-27: A 14-operator team is scheduled to be operating from Hiva Oa, the second largest island of the Marquesas Islands—a group of volcanic islands in French Polynesia. The team will be using the TX7WW call for the CQWW CW 160M event and TX7MAS for EME and satellite activity.
- Christmas Island, VK9XU, Feb. 18-March 4: This multi-operator HF activation of this Australian external territory in the Indian Ocean will be on CW, SSB, FT8, FT4, and RTTY. Christmas Island (26.9 square miles, population 1,600) is ranked as the 69th Most Wanted DXCC Entity per Clublog as of December. Read more about VK9XU here.
- Andaman Islands, VU4X, March 10-25: DX Engineering is proud to sponsor this activation of South Andaman Island, one of about 200 islands of the Andaman Islands group in the Indian Ocean. It is the southernmost island of the Great Andaman (the Andaman Islands’ main archipelago) and home to the majority of the Andaman Islands’ population.
Look for updates on upcoming DX Engineering-sponsored DXpeditions in the weeks ahead. And be sure to visit DXEngineering.com to enhance your DXing capabilities.
