Attention serious IOTA Hunters!
In the southwestern Pacific, the Dx Adventure Radio Club (DA-RC) is excited to introduce to you experienced OM 101DA010 Alberto from New Guinea Island, from the OC-034 referenced New Guinea (Papua New Guinea / Indonesia West Papua) IOTA group.
A licensed ham and avid 11m band enthusiast, Alberto has been pre-occupied with radio comms for more than 30 years, living mostly in Spain where he was a member of the Sugar Delta club (ex-30SD349).
During this time period, Alberto worked and confirmed more than 200 entities + hundreds of Islands On The Air (IOTA) on the eleven meter band.
He easily satisfies DA-RC membership requirements, then, in the ‘DX Hunter Category’ (See https://www.delta-alfa.com/about/membership/).
In addition to an impressive accumulation of DX, 101DA010 Alberto is also experienced in the sphere of dxpedition work and therefore satisfies membership criteria in the ‘DXpedition Category’ also.
He’s been QRV from the Solomon Islands (135 Division/H44), for instance, where he was active from Guadalcanal Island (OC-047), back in 2019, achieving many hundreds of contacts.
We’re excited to reveal that 11m IOTA dx adventure to some of 101 Division’s 600 islands are a distinct possibility during Cycle 25!
An island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, north of Australia (43 Division) and east of Indonesia (91) and Malaysia (58/113), 101DA010 Alberto’s country encompasses the eastern half of New Guinea, the world’s second largest island.
The western half of the island is made up of the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua; the Bismarck Archipelago (New Britain, New Ireland, the Admiralty Islands, and several others); Bougainville and Buka (part of the Solomon Islands chain); and small offshore islands and atolls.
Papua New Guinea is home to eight million people who speak more than 800 languages, native tribes and boasts a plethora of magnificent coral reefs and pristine lagoons sprawled across 600 islands.
Volcanoes, and hiking routes like the Kokoda Trail, traditional tribal villages, hidden Highlands tribes, war cemeteries, the Sepik and Fly rivers, sleepy port towns and seaside villages are just a handful of this country’s attractions.
According to the atlas, the national capital of PNG, Port Moresby, is located in southeastern New Guinea — on the shores of the Gulf of Papua — and this sprawling city with a population of roughly 300,000 is where 101DA010 Alberto calls home.
Referred to as “Pom City” or simply “Moresby”, it’s one of the largest cities in the southwestern Pacific outside of Australia and New Zealand (41).
Port Moresby is a city where sandy islands, beach suburbs and untouched national parks meet a thriving metropolis of small cafes and bars, a diverse food scene and a unique blend of fine art and artefacts.
On the city’s outskirts are traditional fishing villages such as Boera, along the coast line, a far cry from the first-world infrastructure of 5 star hotels that typifies the city centre.
Local landmarks here include Parliament Haus (National Parliament) — modelled in the style of a Sepik spirit house – “haus tambaran”, the Botanic Gardens, the National Museum, the stilt towns of Koki and Hanuabada and the local markets such as the one at Four Mile which are abundant with fresh seafood and vegetables.
101DA010 Alberto has a versatile station for work across all bands.
A Kenwood TS-850 transceiver with the MARS mod is his DX weapon of choice.
This is a competition class rig designed for the serious radio operator with coverage from 160 through 10 meters including the WARC bands, Digital Signal Processing (DSP) in both transmit and receive modes and 100 watts of power on SSB.
Outside his home, on the south-western coast of the Papuan Peninsula, a vertical antenna provides excellent omnidirectional access to all major DX markets — including Europe, Asia and the Americas.
Outside his work as an IT expert in the nation’s capital, 101DA010 Alberto lists travel, fishing, electronics and computers as his main passions.
“I’m an avid collector of vacuum tubes and old electronic components too,” he says.
On 11m, PNG is a ‘rare one’ indeed so Alberto’s station is sure to be a much sought after one indeed on 27 MHz frequencies.
In fact, the only activity from 101 Division in the last decade, according to recognised cluster databases such as Islands Base Online (IBO), has been courtesy of 43DA001 Darren who undertook an IOTA Tour of PNG islands back in 2017.
On the Freeband, you’ll hear 101DA010 Alberto on the International call frequency, 27.555 MHz USB, where he promises to be very active with his new Delta-Alfa QRZ.
A magnificent double QSL card, designed by 14DA010 Stef, is available from his QSL Manager also (See below) to confirm any contact made with his island station!
Hi Alberto
Thx for the QSO 73 de 43WR751