RAFARS Monthly Newsletter

Andrew Humphriss (2E0NDZ) SK

It is with great sadness that we report that Andrew Humphriss 2E0NDZ, recently went silent key. A dedicated and long-standing member, Andrew served as the RAFARS QSL Bureau and Awards Manager for many years. A full obituary will appear in the Autumn edition of QRV.

New RAFARS QSL Bureau and Awards Manager

Dave Bloomfield G0KUC has volunteered to take on the role of RAFARS QSL Bureau and Awards Manager. ---
Hello everyone. My name is Dave Bloomfield – G0KUC – RAFARS 2442. Born and raised in Stratford-upon- Avon. Joined the Air Force in 1969 as a Halton Propulsion Craft Apprentice. I must have been doing something right as they didn’t let me out for 30 years! I then worked for Honeywell Aerospace maintaining and overhauling BAE146 ALF502/LF507 engines down here at Luton before retiring in 2011. I have been licensed and a member of RAFARS since the mid 80s. Apart from my UK license I have held calls in VP8 and ZC4 as well as operating /p from quite a few other countries. I also love organizing and operating special event stations and anniversary calls. I have been a member and instigator at Coningsby, Mount Pleasant, Waddington and Halton club stations. Also I was a RAFARS Council member back in the 90s and an RSGB qsl sub-bureau manager for several years.

Anyway, while talking to members of the RAFARS Council recently, I may have “volunteered” for a few things. The outcome of which means that I have taken over the duties as the RAFARS club callsign administrator, the RAFARS Affiliated Clubs co-ordinater/liaison and the duties of RAFARS qsl bureau manager.

As soon as I have got everything set up I will be contacting all G*RAF callsign holders to check all the information is correct and best way to contact them. I am also hoping to open eqsl.cc accounts for each of the unallocated calls so when they are used by current members I can upload the submitted logs for everyone.

Regarding the affiliated clubs I will again be trying to contact them to check that their “Point of contact” details are correct and also the information in the RAFARS callbook is also up to date. Obviously I will pass on any changes that I am informed of to the callbook editor.

At this time, I intend to operate the qsl bureau as before but I will be seeing if there are any improvements that would help its smooth running. I am always willing to listen to suggestions. Anyone wishing to send envelopes or contact me with any questions my details are correct on qrz.com and in the RAFARS callbook but see below. It may take a little time to get everything set up but I will get back to you as soon as I can.

All the best,
Dave – G0KUC – RAFARS 2442 ---
Contact details for Dave can be found on the website Contacts page and the QSL Bureau page.

RAF Henlow Families Day

RAFARS will be present at the RAF Henlow Families Day in July 2025. Please note that station families days are for local serving personnel and their families and are not open to the public. However, if you are serving at Henlow, do come along and say hello.

RAF Shawbury Families Day

RAFARS will also be providing a stand at the RAF Shawbury Families Day in August 2025. As mentioned above, station families days are not public events so the general public will not be allowed access. RAFARS having a presence such events is an ideal opportunity to spread the word about the society and its aims and to hopefully recruit serving members. It also reinforces the strong links between RAFARS and the RAF.

RAFARS AGM and Dinner 2025

The RAFARS 2025 AGM will take place at 1.30pm on Saturday 25th October 2025 at No 1 Radio School, Flowerdown Hall, RAF Cosford. Members are reminded that items for inclusion under 'Any Other Business', at the AGM, must be received by the Secretary no later than Thursday 10th October 2025.

The Annual Dinner will be on the Saturday evening, 8.00pm at the Ramada Hotel in Telford. The booking form for the AGM and the dinner will be distributed with the Autumn edition of QRV and will also be available for download and printing from the RAFARS website.

Autumn 2025 QRV Journal

The deadline for submissions is 10 August 2025, but please don't leave it to the last minute. For some members, QRV is the only direct contact they have with RAFARS and it is always well received. Do you have an interesting story to tell, or a technical article or review? Submissions don't need to be lengthy, often a couple of pictures with a short description will be of interest to members. Did you take part in the popular Airfields on the Air events, have you operated a new mode or have you got a new piece of kit you would like to tell members about?

QRV is your journal, help us to keep it relevant and interesting and pen a few words for the editor. Your QRV will still be arriving in paper form through the post, and it will also be available for viewing and download via the RAFARS website.

RAFARS QRV JOURNAL ARCHIVE

There are over 130 editions of QRV dating from 1937 to the present day available in the form of PDF documents. Head over to the Member Area to visit the eQRV Journal section, and you will see thumbnail pictures of every cover.

You do need to apply for a password to access the website Member Area. There is a link at the bottom of the Members menu, it's a simple (and free!) process, so please do register. Currently, only about 180 of the 650 strong members take advantage of the additional content in the Member Area, so if you haven't registered, you are missing out!

RAFARS WEBSITE MEMBER AREA

Members are reminded that there is a Members Area on the website at https://www.rafars.org/welcome/ containing a searchable list of members (Number, callsign, first name and county).

Access to the member area is by registration at https://www.rafars.org/register/

RAFARS QRV JOURNAL SUBMISSIONS

The twice-yearly QRV journal is for some of our members the only contact they have with RAFARS during the year. Of course, we have the website but not all members have access to the Internet so the paper edition of QRV remains very relevant. It should also be remembered that QRV is your journal and therefore relies heavily on your contributions.

The QRV Editor is actively seeking content for the next edition of QRV. Submissions can be anything that you think might interest the members, personal stories, technical items, aviation stories etc. There is no need to write War and Peace, a couple of pictures with some descriptive text would be perfect. Please send submissions to the Editor at QRV@rafars.org

Digital jpg photos should be sent as an attachment to Word documents. Please do not import them into the text.

COUNCIL MEETINGS 2025

The Chairman is reviewing the council meeting process with a view to reducing the number of meetings to the 3 per year as required by the constitution, and changing the day of the week so that serving members can attend the meetings. It is probable that more council meetings will be held virtually using Zoom, dates will be published here as notified.

If a council meeting is held at RAFARS HQ at RAF Cosford, members may attend, but travel costs cannot be paid. Members wishing to attend must initially contact the Secretary by e-mail at secretary@rafars.org

Members can attend Council meetings 'virtually' using Zoom. and dates for such meetings will be promulgated in due course. The link for the council meetings is the same as for the weekly Zoom Net (see below). Please note that provision of the council meetings on Zoom is dependent on the availability of the Webmaster and the reliability of the Internet connection at the HQ.

3 December 2024 1900 hrs Zoom. Council meeting called by the Chairman.
4 February 2025 1030 hrs at RAFARS HQ RAF Cosford (Monday)

The following dates are provisional and may well change depending on the availability of council members. Attendance during the working week isn't always possible, so meetings may move to weekends or evenings.

1 April 2025 (Revised date, was 8 April)
9 June 2025 (The day after the RAF Cosford Airshow)
2 September 2025
AGM 25 October 2025 (not a council meeting)
4 November 2025

RAFARS WEEKLY ZOOM NET

The RAFARS Weekly Zoom Net has proven to be a great success with members using the video conference as an additional way of keeping in touch. The Net takes place on Fridays at 1400-1800 local.

The link to the Zoom net is available in the Member Area at https://www.rafars.org/zoomnet/
You will need to be registered for access to the website Member Area, it's a simple process and you can do so at: https://www.rafars.org/register

JOINING THE ROYAL AIR FORCE AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY

All Radio Amateurs and SWL's, (no requirement to be Ex RAF), are invited to apply for RAFARS Membership if you have an interest in the Amateur Radio, the RAF, or Military aviation and are prepared to help the society achieve its published aims and objectives. Membership details are available on the website at https://www.rafars.org/join

Two formats (PDF) of the membership application are available for download, completion and return by post on the Join RAFARS web page.

A new online application form is also available, to be completed online and then printed and posted with your membership fee. The online form is “smart” in that it will display the appropriate membership fee as the form is completed. Those joining after 1 October pay half the normal membership fee.

RAFARS NEWS DESK

This newsletter is published on the RAFARS website every month by the Webmaster Gary G0DNI.

Please send all submissions for the newsletter to Newsdesk@rafars.org