RAYNET members operate under the terms of the Amateur Radio Licence, which sets some restrictions on what may be done. Third-Party Traffic (in other words messages for other people) may only be passed under certain circumstances. The messages may be passed on behalf of
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If you are not sure whether we can operate for you, please contact us to ask.
RAYNET is there to pass messages by radio. We cannot, for instance, take over the operation of a checkpoint for a fun-run. We assign radio operators to several of your personnel, who use their 'RAYNET shadows' to send and receive messages to and from your other personnel. A typical operation will involve five to twenty RAYNET members, and all in contact with each other. (As extreme examples, the Mildenhall Air Show used sixty or seventy operators. At Lockerbie, RAYNET drew operators from as far south as Leicestershire.) Some operators will be at fixed points, others will move about with their 'customers'. Typical examples of where RAYNET operators would be placed are
| Fixed | In a vehicle | On foot | |
| Emergency or Exercise | Rest Centre | Ambulance | With medical staff |
| Event | Checkpoint | Van to pick up retired walkers | With the sweep team |
For further information, see the article about RAYNET by Ron Cowan in Civil Protection (the Home Office's quarterly about Emergency Planning), Issue 22 (Spring 1992), page 9.
In very many cases, your own communications facilities will be fully adequate. We are certainly not telling you how to do your job. There are circumstances, though, where we might be of use. Some of the following benefits apply mainly to Emergencies or mainly to Events.
| Emergency and Exercise | Event |
| Can communicate over difficult terrain | |
| Can work without a mains supply | |
| Free the Users (Ambulance chief, Marshal, etc.) from worrying about communications | |
| If traffic becomes excessive, RAYNET operators are experienced at prioritising | |
| Radio Amateurs pass a technical examination and can often make running repairs in the field | |
| Can provide a service if your normal system fails (e.g. mast down in a storm, mains failure) | No telephone charges |
| Can provide direct communications between different User Services (e.g. Police, Snowplough control, Rest centres) who may have incompatible radios | Can communicate over far further distances than CB or licence-free radios |
| Provide additional radio channels if traffic is heavy (RAYNET does not use your radio bands) | Can provide communications at remote checkpoints even where there is no mobile phone service |
| Not affected by telephone exchanges or mobile phone channels becoming over-used and jammed | Can pass messages about walkers or runners who are lost, overdue, have missed previous checkpoints, etc. |
| Can go into a new area and implement a communications infrastructure within hours (control, outstations, repeaters on buildings/hills, etc.) | |
Contact us on one of the addresses or telephone numbers to discuss your needs.
Since we may only pass messages for certain organisations (as explained above), you will need to tell us which of these is calling us out. In an Emergency or Exercise, you will probably be one of these organisations. For an Event, it might (for instance) be the local Police or the Red Cross or St. John. If you are not sure what is appropriate, ask us. We will need a letter stating who it is, though of course for an Emergency we would not expect this.
No. RAYNET members buy their own equipment and do not charge for their time. Some User Services make a suitable donation, however, to help Leeds RAYNET buy group equipment and pay for overheads such as postage.
There are six main ways:
| First choice: Graham Belt GØSCV (Group Controller) 5, Allerton Hill, Leeds LS7 3QB Home 0113 236 9903 Mobile 07759 018 389 on 24/7 Leeds RAYNET callout number (also responsible for maintaining this Web site) |
Second choice: Richard Arey MØAPY (Deputy Group Controller) 4 Ivson Lawn LS16 6NA Leeds Home 0113 267 4792 Mobile 0778 602 3968 |
Third choice: Eric Bailey G8XIG Home 0113 264 9274 |
Fallback: RAYNET has a national phone number: This is really intended for Emergency use only. |
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Only use the above contact details in an EMERGENCY |
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| Please contact me Graham G0SCV for any information about leeds RAYNET Email: controller@leedsraynet.org |
Updated 17th December 2004