• Weather Forecast Forces Early Shutdown of VP6D Ducie Island DXpedition

    From ARRL de WD1CKS@VERT/WLARB to QST on Thu Nov 1 03:38:24 2018
    10/31/2018

    The VP6D Ducie Island DXpedition[1] announced just after 1600 UTC on October 31 that, "due to an expected worsening in landing conditions," it would cease operations. VP6D now is off the air. The final contact count was 121,136. Most contacts - 67,686 - were on CW, with 28,736 on SSB and 24,714 on digital modes. The operators have merged their N1MM and FT8 logs and uploaded them to the VP6D website and log server. As of October 29, the plan was to continue the operation until November 1 at 1500 UTC. Additional details are not available.

    "We will unload the entire log before we leave the island, most of the FT8 dupes will be removed during that upload," an October 30 update said. "OQRS will be activated after the upload." According to DXA[2], KB7QFE appears to have scored the final contact with VP6D.

    Earlier this week, the team announced plans to tear down the CW and SSB camps on November 1, with antennas, and all non-essential equipment removed from the island to the M/V Braveheart. The next day, sleeping tents were to come down and all remaining gear transported to the ship, which was expected to depart Ducie Island at about 2300 UTC, getting under way at 0200 UTC on November 3 after all gear has been stowed. The schedule was arranged so that the team would not miss the once-per-week flight from Mangareva, French Polynesia, to Tahiti. With possible bad weather in the picture, it's likely that this schedule will be accelerated.

    "The team appreciates the cooperation we've received from the DX community," a VP6D update said on October 30. In its short notice on October 31, the DXpedition team expressed its gratitude to all who tried to contact VP6D, adding, "We look forward to seeing you in another pileup in the future."ÿ


    [1] http://vp6d.com/
    [2] http://dxa3.org/vp6d/

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