getontheairOn the air
The station (hardware, antennas, setups) gets you to the picnic table. This chapter is what you do with the microphone, key, and waterfall. Logging and software come after you can operate.
You are either hunting spotted stations or you are the spotted station. Those are different jobs. Mix them up and you stall a pileup or fail an activation.
| Job | You are… | Page |
|---|---|---|
| Hunt | Search and pounce. Listen, call once, log, move on. | Hunt |
| Activate | The DX. Boundary, reference, minimum QSOs, your ADIF is hunter credit. | Activate |
| Call CQ | Clear the frequency, spot, run. | CQ |
| Pileups | Partial calls, P2P windows, short exchanges, park field stays correct. | Pileups |
| CW | RBN, filters, XIT offset, activator and hunter rhythm. | CW |
| Satellites | FM birds vs linear, Doppler, parking-lot horizon — not a substitute for POTA HF rules. | Satellites |
Digital modes live next door: WSJT-X (FT8 from a park), FLdigi, SSTV. Same on-air manners. Same “no terrestrial repeaters” for award credit. Confirm on docs.pota.app / sota.org.uk / wwff.co.
Start here
- First time with a new callsign or first net: Get on the air.
- First time in a park as the spotted station: Activate then CQ.
- First time working parks from home: Hunt.
- CW-first outing: CW — still pack FT8 for a dead band.
- Ten minutes of sky before HF: Satellites.
On-air manners that also apply on a repeater live on Ethics: listen first, leave a gap, ID. New callsign: Get on the air. Program minimums and 2-fers: Programs.
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