** This announcement may be forwarded to anyone interested in getting on the ARRL Maryland-DC (MDC) Section Winlink message distribution list and participation in MDC Digital emergency communications (EMCOMM) training activities. Interested parties should send a Winlink message request to MDCWINLINK-1 and they will be added to the distribution list. The information that you will need to participate in monthly Check-ins and Challenges will be sent out via Winlink messages. Challenge Announcements will be sent approximately 2 weeks before the Challenge. **

** If VarAC or Fldigi is your mainstay and you wish not to use Winlink, please send your commercial email address to bill.n3xl@verizon.net, Subject: MDC Distribution List, and you will be added to the list. The commercial email option is not open for Winlink users.

PURPOSE:
In the August Challenge you will simulate participation in an ARES Mutual Assistance Team (ARESMAT) event and provide Health and Welfare (H&W) status messages from a simulated Hurricane disaster zone. Amateur radio operators often serve an important role, by relaying H&W messages from disaster areas. (People outside a disaster area are strongly discouraged from sending welfare inquiries into a disaster area. Such inquiries can overwhelm limited communications channels, including Amateur Radio networks, and should be directed to the Red Cross.)

In this Challenge participants will gain familiarity with Winlink, VarAC, and Fldigi forms. Since different ARESMAT teams use differing messaging software, it is important to gain familiarity with as many of them as you can. The emphasis on Peer-to-peer (P2P) messaging in Challenges is because when the internet goes down and Ham radio communications services are called upon, P2P will be the primary method used. It is only with trial and error and repeated practice that operator proficiency can be maintained.

For our VarAC users, this exercise should be done by ?parking? the message at a Target Station. Parking a message that is addressed to a fellow amateur radio operator is a special case that adds some flexibility beyond a simple relay of the message. If the intended recipient station?s VarAC beacon is detected by a Target Station holding a parked message for him, an alert notification is automatically generated notifying the addressee that there is a message available for pickup. This feature can be particularly valuable to a Target Station that may be handling a large amount of H&W traffic, by allowing a certain amount of the traffic to move without manual intervention (see PARKING VMAIL FOR RELAY / PICKUP below).

SCENARIO: Simulated CAT 5 Hurricane Erin is forecast to hit the mid-Atlantic states area, 3-6 August 2025. The storm eye is forecast to pass over Maryland Eastern Shore and progress into the Upper Chesapeake Bay, inflicting severe life-threatening wind and flooding conditions and wide-spread power outages throughout the region. ARESMAT assistance from unaffected Maryland counties has been requested. MDC Section Winlink, VarAC, and Fldigi Target Stations will be providing relays of H&W message traffic originated from the disaster zone.

PLANNING: The following modes of transmission will be supported by Target Stations:
Winlink sessions: Vara FM P2P and Vara HF P2P. VarAC: VarAC HF and VarAC FM. Fldigi: HF MFSK-32.

The Target Station Lists will be sent to the MDC Winlink Distribution List, on or before, Tuesday, 5 August. Pay close attention to Target Station Lists to make your contacts. Fldigi Target Stations will be operating in an attended mode, consequently, their time on the air will be limited. Plan ahead to make a Homerun (see CHALLENGE CREDIT below).

Winlink Vara FM P2P and VarAC FM users should consider the use of digipeating to extend their range beyond VHF line-of-sight. A Vara license is required to digipeat using Winlink Vara FM or VarAC FM.

Update your Winlink, VarAC, and Vara HF, Vara FM, and Fldigi software and check it out before the Challenge. VARA - https://rosmodem.wordpress.com VarAC - https://www.varac-hamradio.com Winlink - https://www.winlink.org/WinlinkExpress Fldigi/Flmsg - https://sourceforge.net/projects/fldigi/files/

EXECUTION: Incident Name: MDC AUGUST CHALLENGE
Dates 7-10 AUGUST 2025

H&W Message Addressee: To: B. Smith, N3XL, Position: AEC Operations 12311 Whitehall Dr. Bowie, MD 20715 Ph. 301-555-1234 Email ? aec-ops@arrl.net

Originator: From: Joe Schmo, Position: Citizen Place of Origin: Ocean City, Maryland Contact Info JSchmo@gmail.com (JSCHMO ATSIGN GMAIL DOT COM) Precedence: TEST W (Welfare)

TASK 1 Winlink: You are simulating an ARESMAT operator deployed to a Hurricane disaster zone. Use the RRI Welfare Radiogram template and create a H&W status report message from a person in the disaster zone (Originator listed above). Use the short, prepared messages available on the RRI Welfare Radiogram form and ensure that all of the addressee information provided above is provided in the message. Send it as a Winlink P2P message to a Target Station for relay. Identify the message as an H&W EXERCISE MESSAGE in the OP Note. Do not select a Liaison Station. Use the Target Station?s callsign in the Liaison Station field.

TASK 2 VarAC: You are simulating an ARESMAT operator deployed to a Hurricane disaster zone. Use EmComm mode VMail to access the ICS-213 message form and compose a H&W status report message from a person in the disaster zone. Use Incident Name provided above and Subject: H&W EXERCISE MESSAGE, include all of the addressee information provided above in the form?s To; line, or in the message text. Utilize RRI Gold message texts (see attached) for the message. In this case the addressee holds an amateur radio callsign, so you should address the VMail to that callsign, N3XL. Place the Vmail in your Outbox, shift to Advanced mode, make your connection to a Target Station, and park your message for relay or pickup (see PARK VMAIL FOR RELAY/PICKUP below). When the addressee has no callsign, as would usually be the case, you would send the Vmail to the Target Station who will be responsible for relaying by any means available, based on the addressee?s contact information.

PARKING VMAIL FOR RELAY / PICKUP: a. Before making a VarAC connection with a Target Station, it is recommended to prepare the message for relay/pickup (SEND VMAIL button). In the EmComm form, address the message to the ultimate destination using all available contact information. Enter desired text. Once prepared, post the VMail to your Outbox. Connect to a Target/Relay Station in Advanced mode. Once connected, go to your Outbox, right click on the message, and select “Relay now through connected station”.

b. Parking has an advantage only if the addressee is a Ham. Otherwise, your VMail is sent to the Target Station.

TASK 3 Fldigi: You are simulating an ARESMAT operator deployed to a tornado disaster zone. Use the ICS-213 Form found in FLMSG and create a H&W status report message from a person in the disaster zone. Use Incident Name provided above, use subject: H&W EXERCISE MESSAGE, and include all of the addressee information provided above in the message text. Utilize the RRI Gold message texts (see attached) for the message. Address the form with all available contact information. Identify the subject as H&W EXERCISE MESSAGE. Approve and when ready, connect to the Target Station, click on AutoSend in the Flmsg top tabs to send your message. Wait on frequency for a message acknowledgment from the Target Station, etc..

FLMSG TIPS: (Recommended NBEMS Config.png attached). a. Save your ICS-213 in FLMSG using File > Save. b. You may view sent and received messages, File > Open C:\Users\userx\NBEMS.files\ICS\messages. c. To send again, use ?File > Open? and double-click on the message > AutoSend. d. Once your message is open, you will find File > View > Plain Text to be a handy way to copy the message text.

ESTABLISHING FLDIGI CONNECTIONS (P = Participant. TS = Target Station) P - Tune radio to TS dial frequency. Use QSY button to adjust frequency to the 1500 sweet spot. TS - QST QST de WX3F WX3F, QST QST de WX3F WX3F K (call periodically, QST=calling all stations). P - Precisely align cursor to TS signal, to obtain good copy. The display center frequency will normally be at, or near, 1500. P - Once good copy of the Target Station is established, respond WX3F WX3F de KB3XYZ KB3XYZ, I have traffic K TS - RR KB3XYZ good copy, pls send your traffic K. P - Send message using AutoSend. TS - Brief acknowledgement, or request to resend, etc.

CHALLENGE CREDIT: N3XL will provide message acknowledgements to participants for ICS213s and Radiograms that have been successfully delivered. Participants are encouraged to complete all three tasks in the August Challenge, but do what you can. You are encouraged to use as many modes and Target Stations as you can. Participation will be documented in the MDC Digital EMCOMM Challenge Report and in the ARRL MDC Section News, https://arrl-mdc.org/section-news/.

HIT A HOMERUN: Everyone completing all 3 tasks will be recognized for hitting a homerun.

In this exercise your message acknowledgement will contain a scorecard, as follows:

• Your message provided/ did not provide the addressee street address.
• Your message provided/ did not provide the addressee phone number.
• Your message provided/ did not provide the addressee email address.
• Your message used/ did not use at least one standard RRI Gold Radiogram text.

NOTES: A VarAC alert_tags.conf file is attached. Copy and paste this file into your VarAC program directory to receive MDC Bulletins and Target Station alerts.

Transmitting in VarAC EmComm mode should only be done in real emergencies. Just be aware that EmComm mode must be used to access ICS-templates - EmComm mode > SEND VMAIL > TEMPLATE. VarAC training tips are available at: https://www.varacwednesday.net/training.html

Tip Sheets on Winlink, VarAC, Brevity in Emergency Communications are available on Google Drive: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1qU3Yj9wuxuxIRzHk9MVRqQZbiptVqADA?usp=sharing

If you have any ideas for the content of future Challenges, or suggestions for improvements, let me know.

73 and GL in the Challenge, Bill N3XL, MDCWINLINK-1 Learn by doing.