Eric Esposito, FK8GMEric is the International Liaison for ARANC, the Amateur Radio Society of New Caledonia. Eric has a lot of QSOs and pileups under his belt such as IOTA operations to several FK-land IOTA counters, including an IOTA operation from Chesterfield Islands in 1993 (FK5C). More recently Eric joined the VK9WM and FW8ZZ operations and obtained the highest possible marks from his team members.
Eric is a co-organizer of the TXØDX DXpedition and will be part of the SSB operating team. Eric had a very important role in obtaining several local permits to land on Chesterfield and to use the TXØDX special call sign. Eric will be busy up to the departure date since New Caledonian authorities will be coming to the Northern port of Koumac to do a Customs clearance for the DXpedition vessel and material.
Eric is thrilled that this proposed new DXCC counter would bring an international group of amateur radio operators from Finland, Japan and the United States to Noumea to foster international friendship and to share this exciting segment of amateur radio with the ARANC membership.
Franck Petitjean, FK8HCWhen you hear a booming signal out of New Caledonia it is most probably Franck. He is a technically oriented DXer, and he is known to be the one to fix any radio equipment problem in the field.
Franck will be part of CW team, but he may jump to SSB occasionally. He will be the TXØDX radio equipment manager, looking after the line-up of Yaesu equipment on the island. Franck will also support the generator maintenance and simply move wherever a technical hand is needed at TXØDX.
Franck's greatest belief is that the DXpedition signal needs to be loud to control the multitudes. He has an idea that he would not even get on the air without pushing his amp to the highest legal limit. He thinks that at Chesterfield the amplifiers are the first pieces of equipment to be turned on! His T-shirt reads "QRO Is!"
Kan Mizoguchi, JA1BKKan is a veteran DXer and DXpeditioner of several decades, specializing in new DXCC entity research. He was recently involved in his dream of activating new DXCC entities the Austral Islands and the Marquesas Islands (both as FOØMIZ). He was a founding Executive Committee member of IARU Region 3 and is the world's highest scoring 6-meter DX operator. He was also a co-organizer of the famous "ZA1A missionary DXpedition".
Kan is also a co-organizer of TXØDX expedition, specializing in the DXCC initiative research as well as transportation, contractual and legal issues. In addition to general SSB and CW operating, Kan will concentrate on making TXØDX successful on 6 meters.
Kan's objective for TXØDX is to make it workable and loud through an effective equipment lineup and an extensive array of generators to secure a powerful signal into all corners of the world on all bands.
Trey Garlough, N5KOTrey was first licensed 1974 as WN4KKN. To say he is an "avid contester" would be an understatement! While he particularly excels at CW contesting, he can often be found dabbling in SSB and RTTY contests as well.
A member of the legendary N5AU contest team from the early 1980's, Trey has been particularly active in recent years from his HC8N Galapagos Islands QTH. His hard work at building this world-class station is paying great dividends; Trey claimed the new single operator, all-band world record in his 1999 CQ WW CW contest performance.
Even the casual contester will certainly find Trey in his logbook under many call signs: 6D2X, 7J7YAA, EA9UK, HC1OT, LU6ETB, K6O, KP2A, ON4UN, PJ9B and ZPØY, among others.
One of Trey's current goals is to complete his 5BWAZ (all 200 band-zones) from HC8N. As of early 2000, he only has three band-zones to go!
In 1999, Trey joined the ZL9CI Campbell Island DXpedition. TXØDX will be his encore DXpedition performance. No doubt you will be hearing more from N5KO on future DXpeditions!
Wayne Mills, N7NGWayne is also a veteran DXer and DXpeditioner. DXing since 1956 and living in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, he is a real Mountain DXer. Since 1984 he has been on the DXpedition trail, with a number of significant DXpedition credits on his wall--Auckland Island, Albania, Spratly, Pratas, Scarborough and Temotu among others.
Wayne's role for TXØDX is external relations. Liaison with funding organizations and research for the DXAC are among the necessary functions. He is a member of the CW team, but will do SSB as well. He will also assist in all phases of the technical operations on the island. Wayne is a specialist in pileup management, and will be looking to keep the multitudes in line and under control.
Pekka Kolehmainen, OH1RYWith lots of expeditions (3D2AM, 3C2CT, T33R, and H4ØAA) under his belt--of which several have qualified as "DXpedition of the Year"--Pekka has valuable experience in making the best out of each situation through his technical competence and cooperative personality. He is one of the inventors of the famous FinnFet solid state DXpedition amps. His interest is primarily on low-band SSB but he will sit in at any pileup on any band.
Pekka is part of the SSB team but will concentrate on making a reasonable effort on 80M/40M SSB when the time is ripe. Pekka has planned, designed and manufactured the entire antenna lay-out for TXØDX. Just wait to hear the signals from TXØDX!
Working hard but also having fun on a DXpedition is the value that Pekka would like to bring. Stressed DXpeditioners might easily lose control, but the fact that the pileup is a mirror of the DXpeditioner will guide Pekka in his operating.
Kari Leino, OH2BCWith a vast early contesting experience under his belt, with all DXCC countries worked, Kari has recently concentrated on "odd DX modes" such as 2 m moon bounce and 6 m in it's variety of propagation modes. Kari knows those lonely nights "being at the watch tower" and waiting for a 6 m signal to surface from the noise.
Kari will be primarily responsible for the 6 m operating but with a close proximity to the WARC site he will make himself heard on SSB on a variety of bands. Kari's additional responsibility is to be part of the TXØDX treasury team.
The late March date is known to be a good 6 m season, thus the 6 m QSO count may be surprisingly high. The 50 MHz brotherhood will be particularly happy to have a new DXCC entity operation making a fair try on 6 m on a daily basis.
Martti Laine, OH2BHMartti is another veteran DXer, contester and DXpeditioner of nearly three decades. TXØDX is his 10th new DXCC entity in the DXCC program. Martti has promoted the "actor and audience" concept in which a positive dialogue in the pileup will secure orderly operating and a happy audience. He is the author of "Where Do We Go Next?" and has been a new country architect for the past 30 years. Martti was recently named "Amateur of the Year" for 2000, and will be presented with this distinguished award at the Dayton Hamvention.
Martti is a co-organizer of TXØDX and is specializing in material management, planning and operating strategy. He will be mostly on SSB but may jump onto the WARC bands as well during the WPX contest weekend. He will also keep the TXØDX pilots informed.
Martti's objective will continue to be helping everyone to secure their first contacts quickly and to maximize the number of different call signs in the TXØDX log. This will be done by selecting one or two "volume" bands up front and running them dry!
Pertti Turunen, OH2RFPertti is the past and present DX manager of SRAL--the Finnish Amateur Radio Society. He is active daily in DX and has much valuable experience under his belt from AH3C/KH5J (Jarvis Island), ZS9Z/ZS1 (Penguin Islands) as well as several other solo DXpeditions. Pertti is a "perfectionist" when it comes to solid DXpeditioning.
Pertti will be part of the SSB team but plans to put in a significant effort on the WARC bands as well. As the team doctor, he will look after the group's medical needs and our overall wellbeing on the trip.
Making the pileup "water clear" and completing each QSO in such way that everyone understands what is happening at all times is the element that Pertti is most keen on promoting.
Jean Michel was first licensed in 1968. For his first year on the air, he was active only on CW, using a home made receiver and transmitter. He has been a member of the French amateur radio society Union Francaise des Radioamateurs (REF-Union) since 1963, and a member of the Clipperton DX Club from 1978.
F6AJA is perhaps best known as the editor of the highly respected French-language DX bulletin Les Nouvelles DX (LNDX), which he has published every two weeks since 1981. He is active on both SSB and CW on all bands (160 to 10) and needs only P5 on SSB and both P5 and A5 on CW.
DXers will also recognize Jean Michel as the QSL manager for all of F2JD's many DX activities since 1982. This includes the recent operations as HP1XBI, HK3JBR, HR5/F2JD, etc. F6AJA also shares the QSL management responsibilities with F6CYV for the first two operations from the Chesterfield Islands--FK5C in February, 1993 and FK8KAB/P in October, 1993--as well as FK5M from Matthew Island and FK8VHT from New Caledonia.
Eddy was born in 1928 in Pola. He spent much of his early life in France before moving to New Caledonia in 1954.
Licensed since 1977, Eddy used to be very active on all bands and modes on HF. Now he can more often be found on the many amateur satellites such as UO22, KO25 and others.
Eddy was a member of the two previous DXpeditions to the Chesterfield Islands--FK5C in February, 1993 and FK8KAB/P in October, 1993--as well as FK5M from the Matthew Islands, and an operation from Wallis Island. He says his passions these days include radio technology, computers, satellites, and of course, the Internet.
Eddy's experience with weather satellite systems might come in handy as a member of the TXØDX pilot team. Certainly, the weather could be one of the most critical aspects of the operation.
Eddy wishes success to all DXers who will be fighting through the TXØDX pileups.
"Mike" Michiaki Watanabe, JH1KRC, was born in 1956, and first got his Phone Class license in 1967 as the youngest amateur in Japan. Mike's interest is in amateur radio technology for equipment and antennas, as well as in DXing and DXpeditions. Mike has operated from XZ1A, BV9P, XU1SS, XU9M, 3D2KR, 8Q7BI, etc.--some as serious DXpeditions and others for pleasure with his XYL Sylvie, JP1LAB.
Mike and Sylvie have three sons, who sign 7M4WGI, 7N3ABG and 7N3ABH. Recently Mike's family inherited land from his late father that is a very good location for DXing. Mike, a DX vagabond, set up a well-designed radio operating site for DXing from 160 m through 3 cm, not only for ionospheric propagation, but also for moon bounce communications, presently ready on 70 cm and 23 cm. Mike has named this place the DX Family Garden. It is located 150 km north of Tokyo.
Mike is well known as the president of the DX Family Foundation, a JA DX organization, and he continues to keep up his amateur radio career as well as his profession as a chief doctor of obstetrics and gynecology in a local hospital in Tochigi. Before the Internet era, in the early '90s, Mike was known as a leader of the medical communications network between doctors in Asia and Pacific areas utilizing Japanese governmental experimental satellite transponders for the transmission of up-to-date medical information between underdeveloped countries and Japan. Obviously, amateur radio and DXing has given a lot to Mike's life and profession.
A ham since 1956, Bill's K6GNX call sign is an original. He is an Electrical Engineering professor and designs circuits for a living. With 325 confirmed, his passion is now working all countries on SSB and CW, 160 through 10. Bill's station is on top of a small mountain with a 360-degree view down slope in all directions. He has Yagis for 80 through 10 meters. The 160 four square is a work in progress.
His wife Lois is N6GDA. Her very first QSO was with the North Cook Islands. Lois always comes to the Visalia DX convention; Bill says he is a lucky man. She works W6EU every year on CW during sweepstakes. Bill's 30-year-old son, Bill the third, loves computer programming and digital design. He almost got hooked on ham radio when he was 9 and wanted to help Bill work all states. His recent birthday present to Bill was coming over to help change the 40 meter Yagi--good kid!
Feel free to e-mail your comments regarding the TXØDX operation to Bill at k6gnx@telemetry.com!
Tim earned his Novice license WN4UYU in 1976 at age 10. Within a year, he had upgraded to General, using the call WA4UYU. With his dad, K4EFD, as his Elmer, Tim became particularly active in DXing and contesting in the mid-1980s as KJ4VH. Tim's N4GN call was assigned with the opening of the U.S. vanity call sign program in 1996.
Since 1988, Tim has operated from more than two dozen DXCC countries, including contest and/or DXpedition operations from 4U1ITU, BQ9P (Pratas Island), BS7H (Scarborough Reef--twice!), BT1X (from China's Great Wall), C21BH, CN8FC, CN8FC, H4ØAA (Temotu Province), H44DX, HC8N, J37H/J33A, OHØ/N4GN, OJØ/N4GN, T77C, TF3IRA, V2/KJ4VH, VP2MDH/VP2MU, VS6WO. In 1997, Tim passed the Finnish amateur radio exam, obtaining the vanity call OH4GN.
Preferring CW, Tim also operates SSB and has taken up RTTY in recent years. Tim and his father also enjoy pushing the limits of microwave communications. They are active on all amateur bands from 1.8 MHz through 24 GHz.
Tim was originally planned to be part of the TXØDX operating team, but was unable to rearrange his business commitments to meet the DXpedition schedule. He will now serve as part of the pilot team, while also acting as TXØDX web master.
Jarmo was licensed in 1959 after three years of intensive SWLing, and he has from the outset been devoted to the CW mode of operation. Today a Bencher fan, he has over the years tried his hand on a variety of Vibroplex paddles, now proudly lined up on the mantelpiece to remind him of those other years when he was using all homebrew equipment built around a Geloso VFO and an 807 PA. He has been a dedicated DXer down through the years, but did not adopt a systematic approach to the art of chasing the rare ones until 1975 when the ARRL launched the CW DXCC program. He now has worked and confirmed all countries on the current Countries List and is eagerly looking forward to adding Chesterfields to his totals to continue being worthy of the DXCC #1 Plaque hanging on the wall.
Regarding the DX Guru of Marin County, CA or Professor Cass, WA6AUD as one of his great sources of inspiration, Jarmo has earned certain notoriety with his claim to the title of being the Local QRPer, literally living up the hill with a broadband view of the city skyline but never having fired up his PA--currently an FL-2100B--into a beam antenna. His potent DX radiator is a HyGain vertical which has enabled him to log many valued countries, even when the DX station similarly used a ground plane . . . all this in defiance of one of Martti's Laws of DX which says that two ground planes never meet, except on the factory production line.
David was first licensed in 1981 as a VK Novice and upgraded 2 years later to his current call VK3EW. David is employed in a small engineering factory close to his home and says this has it advantages--especially when working DX at grayline times!
In early 1991, David and his wife Elly decided to look for a bit more room to grow DX antennas. After many weeks of searching, they found a 5-1/2 acre country lot with a small 6-year old house about 45 km south east of Melbourne. There only 2 days, David and Elly had a TH6 up on a temporary pole, pointing south for one that he needed at the time--the South Sandwich Islands. Some of the locals driving past slowed down to look at this huge new "TV antenna" that had suddenly grown up in the field overnight!
David's passion has always been DX--to be somewhere in the pileup. In doing so, he has become a very recognized call sign from Australia. In recent years, David has been a great follower of Martti Laine and his DXpeditions, and is thrilled to be part of the TXØDX team.
One memorable day last year, Elly came home to find David a total nervous wreck. She asked what was wrong? With tears still dripping on the floor, he hugged her and yelled, "I JUST WORKED MARTTI IN NORTH KOREA!!" P51BH was David's very last DXCC country, making him the only mainland VK station to have them all confirmed.
David was asked, "since you have them all now, what's next?" He replied, "I'm having a great time on the newer 'WARC' bands, while waiting for the new ones in the future!" David says his greatest radio-related dream will be fulfilled in May when he goes to the Dayton Hamvention and meets "Amateur of the Year" Martti Laine, OH2BH.
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