type accepted

[Glen Zook]

In a true "life and death" emergency it is legal to
use any, and all, means of communications.  However,
those situations are very few and far between.  In
these days of cellular and PCS telephones, since the
vast majority of the population has them today, it is
much more practical to use them by dialing 911 (or
other emergency telephone number) than to try to use a
piece of amateur radio equipment out-of-band.

Also, virtually all of the amateur portable equipment
is FM, and is useless on the AM aircraft band.  You
would not be heard unless the receiving station just
happened to be off frequency and received you via
"slope detection".  That is a very unlikely situation.
 Also, you would not be able to hear that station
transmitting since the very purpose of the limiter
circuitry in an FM receiver is to eliminate all AM
modulation.  Since most noise is AM in nature, this is
one of the reasons why FM is much less affected by
man-made noise.

Type accepted equipment means that the equipment has
been submitted for tests to confirm that it meets the
stability, spurious emission, modulation (percentage
for AM and deviation for FM along with bandwidth),
etc. that are required for the particular service in
which the type acceptance is being requested.

You can modify any type accepted equipment for use on
an amateur band.  However, the reverse is not true.
You cannot legally modify a piece of non-type accepted
equipment (and virtually all amateur equipment is not
type accepted for use on the commercial frequencies)
for use on commercial frequencies for the purpose of
transmitting unless you submit the modified radio for
type acceptance (a lengthy, expensive, proposition).
You can listen all you want.  However, every time you
transmit, you make yourself liable for a fine of up to
$10,000 per day per radio (i.e. if you have a mobile
and a portable modified for the commercial bands, you
would be liable for a maximum of $20,000 per day, and
so-on).

For some reason, amateur radio operators who abhore
the illegal operations of truckers on 10 meters,
shrimp boats on 2 meters, etc., think nothing of doing
exactly the same thing by modifying their amateur
equipment to work on commercial frequencies.  Just
because the amateur belongs to a volunteer fire
department, rescue squad, auxillary police department,
or other organization, he cannot use his amateur
equipment on those frequencies to transmit.

Amateurs are allowed to transmit outside of the
amateur bands on specified frequencies if they are
members of MARS and CAP.  However, those are specific
exceptions to the type accepted rule.

If an amateur belongs to an organization like a
volunteer fire department, it is perfectly legal for
him/her to purchase a type accepted radio and put
amateur frequencies on channels not needed for
communications by the organization.  The only
requirement is that to transmit on those amateur
frequencies, it must be done either by, or under the
direct supervision of, a licensed amateur ("third
party" regulations).

I have done that specific use for years.  When I owned
several 450 - 470 MHz commercial repeaters, I
programmed my commercial, type accepted, radios with
my repeater frequencies.  The unused frequencies I
programmed amateur repeaters.  This is perfectly
legal.  However, for me to use an amateur, non-type
accepted, radio the other way around (with my
commercial repeater frequencies installed), is not
legal.

Frequency stability, spurious emissions, and
modulation are the three things that most amateur
radio equipment do not meet commercial standards.
Frequency stability is the most prevalent.  For use on
"high band" (150.8 - 174 MHz) and "UHF" (450 - 512
MHz) a mobile radio must meet the frequency stability
of 0.0005 percent which means 750 Hz at 150 MHz and
2250 Hz at 450 MHz.  However, the 0.0005 percent at
450 MHz is going away and the new standards will
require about as close a frequency as "high band".
The 800 MHz and 896 MHz bands have much closer
tolerances.

Amateur equipment, for the most part, will not hold
that close a frequency (check it on a service monitor
sometime).  The frequency will move around the desired
frequency quite a bit.  Most commercial equipment will
hold much closer than the absolute limits of
tolerance.  Many will hold within 100 to 200 Hz.

Also, if you get caught transmitting out of band, you
might well not only be fined, but, lose your amateur
license, often for life!

Glen, K9STH

--- Justin L Hall <justin.hall at JUNO.COM> wrote:
> If your handheld VHF aircraft radio is
> 'type-accepted' you use it for
> that function.  And if it goes to the ham bands, you
> can use it there.
> But because my VX-5 isn't type-accepted, I can't use
> it on the aircraft
> bands.  If I was in a Cessna and the radio went out,
> would I use it?
> Yes, it's an emergency, but I can't take it with me
> as the radio for the
> airplane.
> At least that's what I was taught type accepted
> meant.  Correct me if I'm
> wrong folks.


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