Satellite Phones or alternative comms

[Gleock]

Who provides Starlink in SA?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

VOX offers a satellite option.

[zs6hdv]

Please Tell us more

Let me try to give an introduction:

Normally, you get a radio licence for a single frequency (sometimes for a set of frequencies). Examples are CB licences (multiple channels), or a 4x4 club (I think Land Cruiser Club has their own frequencies), ORRA (Off-road Radio Association) or security companies. Your radio is licensed much like gun licences.

If you as a person is licensed as an amateur radio operator, you get access to a range of radio frequencies (you can Google "amateur radio band plan" for the frequencies). Amateurs can have unlimited radios. BUT, the amateur licence does not cover, for example, the ORRA frequencies, or the frequencies some farm communities operate on. If I want to legally operate on 4x4 channels, CB and amateur bands, I technically need three different radios in addition to the three licences, because amateur radios is not supposed to work outside the amateur bands.

I have been asked for advice on radio equipment from preparedness-minded friends, and my first question is always: Who do you want to talk to? Because that individual needs to be able to talk on the same frequency as yourself. If you are equipping a group and want to communicate only in that group, it is OK. But if you want to make contact with unknown parties, it is much more difficult. In addition to the frequency, you have different modes, such as FM, AM, Single Side Band (LSB or USB), and then there are the digital modes and CW (Morse code).

Amateur bands include allocations in HF (3MHz - 30MHz), VHF (30MHz - 300MHz) and UHF (300-3000 MHz). The last two are pretty much line-of-sight only, so you're looking at 10km range unless you're on a mountaintop. HF, specifically under about 10MHz, can talk over the horizon. I have made contacts with amateurs 19000km away from my house (using no infrastructure aside from my HF radio and antenna (and the same on his side)).

Long distance comms (i.e. HF) is not plug and play, there is a lot of skill involved (in terms of setting up your antenna and getting it tuned up). Expecting to have an HF radio in a closet and being able to establish communications in an emergency scenario is probably wishful thinking, so getting your licence and getting involved is sensible. It is a rewarding hobby as well as a survival skill.

You do have to pass a technical exam to get licensed. Most towns have amateur radio clubs which could help with classes to pass the Radio Amateur Exam (RAE). The exam is written on two occasions every year, in May (just last week) and in October.

Ask for more information, I don't want to be too long-winded.

P.S. amateur operators have call signs to identify them uniquely. In South Africa, the call sign will be ZS or ZR, followed by a number (identifying the region you are based), and a 1 to 3 letter suffix you can choose yourself. My forum name is my amateur call sign (although I am now ZS1HDV, having relocated from the old Transvaal (Region 6) to the Western Cape (Region 1)). HDV are my initials.

[Vaal]

The question is also, what is the R per minute to chat on these devices if the internet is down? It might be very scary.

[wave.jaco]

Very interesting conversation this. I was also in a very similar discussion recently. Besides the HF/amateur radio route, some options considered were technologies like LoRa for transmitting small, urgent text messages. For voice communication it seems like amateur radio or satellite (e.g. Starlink) might be the only viable options, with the latter not very practical if you need to connect a number of people.

[BBT]

Let me try to give an introduction:

Normally, you get a radio licence for a single frequency (sometimes for a set of frequencies). Examples are CB licences (multiple channels), or a 4x4 club (I think Land Cruiser Club has their own frequencies), ORRA (Off-road Radio Association) or security companies. Your radio is licensed much like gun licences.

If you as a person is licensed as an amateur radio operator, you get access to a range of radio frequencies (you can Google "amateur radio band plan" for the frequencies). Amateurs can have unlimited radios. BUT, the amateur licence does not cover, for example, the ORRA frequencies, or the frequencies some farm communities operate on. If I want to legally operate on 4x4 channels, CB and amateur bands, I technically need three different radios in addition to the three licences, because amateur radios is not supposed to work outside the amateur bands.

I have been asked for advice on radio equipment from preparedness-minded friends, and my first question is always: Who do you want to talk to? Because that individual needs to be able to talk on the same frequency as yourself. If you are equipping a group and want to communicate only in that group, it is OK. But if you want to make contact with unknown parties, it is much more difficult. In addition to the frequency, you have different modes, such as FM, AM, Single Side Band (LSB or USB), and then there are the digital modes and CW (Morse code).

Amateur bands include allocations in HF (3MHz - 30MHz), VHF (30MHz - 300MHz) and UHF (300-3000 MHz). The last two are pretty much line-of-sight only, so you're looking at 10km range unless you're on a mountaintop. HF, specifically under about 10MHz, can talk over the horizon. I have made contacts with amateurs 19000km away from my house (using no infrastructure aside from my HF radio and antenna (and the same on his side)).

Long distance comms (i.e. HF) is not plug and play, there is a lot of skill involved (in terms of setting up your antenna and getting it tuned up). Expecting to have an HF radio in a closet and being able to establish communications in an emergency scenario is probably wishful thinking, so getting your licence and getting involved is sensible. It is a rewarding hobby as well as a survival skill.

You do have to pass a technical exam to get licensed. Most towns have amateur radio clubs which could help with classes to pass the Radio Amateur Exam (RAE). The exam is written on two occasions every year, in May (just last week) and in October.

Ask for more information, I don't want to be too long-winded.

P.S. amateur operators have call signs to identify them uniquely. In South Africa, the call sign will be ZS or ZR, followed by a number (identifying the region you are based), and a 1 to 3 letter suffix you can choose yourself. My forum name is my amateur call sign (although I am now ZS1HDV, having relocated from the old Transvaal (Region 6) to the Western Cape (Region 1)). HDV are my initials.

Thanks for the explanation.
I live on a small holding with 4 houses close by, we are currently using baofeng 2 way radios and have settled on a channel to use. It only has a range of about 5kms so we can reach our other neighbors, the only problem is that they are sometimes on a different channel to us. Apparently the farm watch in our area, uses I think UHF and the one guy is charging them R80 per month license fees. We get by just fine with our small walkie talkies, but I wanted to get something with more range in a SHTF scenario

[Trundle]

Who provides Starlink in SA?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I installed mine on Friday.
Runs like a dream.

169 D 13 U 100-ish ping

IT-Lec in Upington supplied it
R15 for kit
R1800 per month.

I have noted that it uses MTN or CellC on the Ookla speedtest.

Not sure if it will trunk via an out of country provider if the grid goes down. I sincerely hope it does.

[Daaf Malan]

Contact Paratus in Centurion. They install a satellite dish from which you run your internet and a VOIP phone. Works 24/7 with a UPS unless there is very thick cloud cover. The cost is around R750 per month only, kit is around R3- R4. Not a mobile installation though.

[zguy]

Contact Paratus in Centurion. They install a satellite dish from which you run your internet and a VOIP phone. Works 24/7 with a UPS unless there is very thick cloud cover. The cost is around R750 per month only, kit is around R3- R4. Not a mobile installation though.

This is a WISP, so Line of Site internet. Not comparable to Starlink.
This is basically a Wifi connection to a high site tower in the area.

As correctly stated, its not mobile, but also depends on the high-site not going down. And the highsite will be reliant on Fibre to function.

WISP is good for communication where you cannot get a fixed line, but its not SHTF,

[zguy]

I installed mine on Friday.
Runs like a dream.

169 D 13 U 100-ish ping

IT-Lec in Upington supplied it
R15 for kit
R1800 per month.

I have noted that it uses MTN or CellC on the Ookla speedtest.

Not sure if it will trunk via an out of country provider if the grid goes down. I sincerely hope it does.

The ISP will be Starlink, so its probably just assigning an IP from an SA IP block, or using your GPS to determine location for test.
100ms is not bad for ping. years ago you were lucky if ping was under 2000 or 3000ms for satellite.

[zguy]

Thanks for the explanation.
I live on a small holding with 4 houses close by, we are currently using baofeng 2 way radios and have settled on a channel to use. It only has a range of about 5kms so we can reach our other neighbors, the only problem is that they are sometimes on a different channel to us. Apparently the farm watch in our area, uses I think UHF and the one guy is charging them R80 per month license fees. We get by just fine with our small walkie talkies, but I wanted to get something with more range in a SHTF scenario

On a license free channel, can you not install a vehicle setup / base station to work as a repeater? you will get much better coverage