Members of the Helvetia Telegraphy Club (HTC) will activate the callsign HB9HC/AM in the air from a hot air balloon.

Hans-Peter, HB9BXE, informs OPDX that the HB9HC/AM team's planned date is Tuesday, September 14th. Alternative dates are: Wed. 15th, Thu. 16th and Sat. 18th.

The balloon flight will be 2 hours long (within 0530-0900 UTC). The hot air balloon ride is very dependent on the weather. The probability that a trip will take place on the scheduled date is around 50 percent and the decision about it will be made at short notice! The Web team will try to keep the information up-to-date (on QRZ.com) in a timely manner.

Operators mentioned are Urs/HB9ABO, Hans-Peter/HB9BXE, Uli/HB9CGA, Peter/HB9TVK and Thomas/HB9BSH. The equipment is a KX3 with 15W into antennas for 40/30/20m (hanging vertically). Other bands may be possible.

It is advisable to consult the network of inverted beacons or a cluster to locate the active frequency. RBN link:
http://www.reversebeacon.net/dxsd1/dxsd1.php?f=0&c=hb9hc%2Fam&t=dx

You will be able to track the exact position of the balloon via APRS at:
https://aprs.fi/#!call=a%2FHB9HC-5&timerange=3600&tail=3600

A special "balloon card" QSL will be available via the Bureau.
For more details and photos, see QRZ.com.

OPDX