DX Engineering Gear Plays an Important Role
The historic Rig in a Box N5J DXpedition from the Jarvis Island National Wildlife Refuge is in the books. Jarvis was the 18th Most Wanted DXCC Entity per Clublog when the activation was fully underway on August 9, 2024.
Thanks to countless hours of planning, technical advancements in the hobby, amazingly skilled offshore and worldwide remote operators, sponsors including DX Engineering, and an active community of DXers, the #18 ranking will certainly take a precipitous fall when the next most-wanted list is released.
N5J marked the first activation of Jarvis Island (a dual entity with Palmyra Island) since the April 1990 AH3C/KH5J DXpedition, which logged 55,000 QSOs over ten days. The only other time Jarvis has been QRV was AD1S/KH5 in November 1983—the first time this 1.7-square-mile coral island in the South Pacific was on the air.
Along with remote CW and FT8 stations, the N5J at-island operating team of Don Greenbaum, N1DG; Mike Snow, KN4EEI; Tomi Pekarik, HA7RY; Rig in a Box innovator George Wallner, AA7JV; and Adrian Ciuperca, KO8SCA recorded more than 100,000 QSOs on 160-6M in SSB, CW, and FT8 after 11 days of operation. Additionally, 3,000 operators qualified for an N5J special award by making FT8, CW, and SSB contacts and logging QSOs on five bands.
As noted by Ann Fried on the N5J Facebook page, “All the hard work and planning did a great service to hams worldwide.”
Pierre Leroy wrote, “Keep on doing good work. Conditions are not easy but ATNO from ON6PL.”
“Thanks to the whole team for outstanding work,” wrote Tor Langvand. “Challenging propagation from time to time. Nevertheless, >100K QSOs in the book is fantastic. Great job, all.”
Gerry Hull, W1VE, posted on the N5J Facebook page the day the DXpedition went QRT, “The Magnet team is busy taking down everything and preparing for the trip back to American Samoa. They are the real heroes who powered this operation! As the Team Lead for the CW Remote Crew, I couldn’t be happier about the outcome. As an advocate of remote DXing and contesting, I’m extremely pleased how everything worked.”
From the N5J website, the team wrote, “Thank you for all the QSOs. It was a blast.”
The Impact of RIB Operations
The Rig in a Box concept, which allows self-contained amateur radio stations to be placed on land while operators work remotely, is proving to be a game-changer for DXpeditioners as well as hams trying to check off the remaining rare entities on their DXCC scorecard.
RIB-centered ventures dramatically increase the chances that decision-makers governing wildlife protected areas will grant permission for these operations. RIB DXpeditions ensure that boots will only be on land to set up, tear down, and maintain the RIB stations, reducing environmental impact and eliminating a stumbling block that has kept many entities off the air for decades.
Get up close and personal with the N5J team in this video featuring DX Engineering CEO Tim Duffy, K3LR, interviewing operators aboard the MV Magnet on August 9, 2024.
“In addition to us being here there are three Fish and Wildlife scientists that are currently on the island,” explained George, AA7JV, in the video. “They’re conducting research and working on the island. This is really the result of Don (N1DG) having worked with the Fish and Wildlife Service to convince them that amateur radio can be not just a user but a partner. And as a partner we can contribute to their efforts, and in return for that, they let us operate from these very highly protected reserves where normally they do not let anybody.”
DX Engineering Equipment on Jarvis Island
In DX Engineering’s ongoing mission to stand beside hams who are putting rare DXCC entities on the air, the company contributed a range of gear to complement the RIB setups:
- DX Engineering DXE-ATK65A Telescoping Aluminum Antenna Tubing Kits
- DX Engineering 400MAX Type N Low-Loss 50-Ohm Coax Assemblies
- Summit Racing 16-Gauge Accessory Wire
- Amphenol Type N Double Female Adapter Connectors
- Mastrant Support and Guy Line Rope
The teams at DX Engineering and OnAllBands salute everyone involved in making the N5J DXpedition to Jarvis Island possible. Look for posts about more DX Engineering-sponsored DXpeditions in the days ahead.
73!
