From the largest and most populous isle in the Mediterranean, Sicily, the Dx Adventure Radio Club (DA-RC) is thrilled to introduce to you 1DA086 Carmelo.
This high-profile DX hunter, world-class contester and experienced DXpeditioner links with the DA-RC in January 2024, determined to give the new solar cycle a real shake up with his new Delta-Alfa callsign!
A licensed ham and passionate 11m DX enthusiast, 1DA086 Carmelo (seen pictured right) is a highly thought of hobbyist in European circles; a professional, popular and down-to-earth operator.
Impressively, 1DA086 Carmelo nails down DA-RC Membership requisites in all 3 membership categories — DX Hunter, DXpeditioner and DX Leadership.
See https://www.delta-alfa.com/about/membership/
On the DX battlegrounds, 1DA086 Carmelo is a former affiliate of the Echo Tango, Alfa Tango and Echo Kilo groups respectively.
During these years he stockpiled an impressive total of 247 DXCC and 198 islands (IOTA, NV-IOTA and IWI), as well as many hundreds of Special Event Stations (SES), from the trenches of his home shack.
History reveals that 1DA086 Carmelo also finished on the podium of several AT and SD contests, as either a Hunter and/or SES.
In the area of DX Leadership category, 1DA086 Carmelo has made many valuable contributions at the frontline of management to assist his previous clubs.
In fact, his leadership resumé lists HQ and QSLM roles, project management duties and more!
On the dx adventure front, 1DA086 Carmelo’s feats are equally inspiring.
In fact, our prominent Sicilian DX Man has achieved several successful Islands On The Air (IOTA), Castles On The Air (COTA) and Summits On The Air (SOTA) activities in the past decade.
Terrific news is that Carmelo has outlined plans to continue these dxpedition projects with his new DA QRZ, meaning plenty of exciting opportunities are on the horizon for serious hunters of DX on the 11m band.
Located in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula, Sicily Island is regarded as an interesting IOTA prospect for islands chasers.
In fact, this picturesque island DXstination has its very own reference— EU-025—in keeping with the very popular World IOTA Program.
See: https://www.iota-world.org/islands-on-the-air/iota-groups-islands/group/354.html
Its name deriving from the Italian word “sica”, which means “scythe”, Sicily is a dazzling diversity of landscapes and cultural treasures…
Among them are beautiful theatres and museums, golden beaches, rocky volcanic coastlines, glittering seas and citrus groves; dramatic cliffside villages and towns, as well as an abundance of ancient ruins and fascinating archaeological sites.
1DA086 Carmelo’s gorgeous island is separated from Calabria, in southern Italy, by the Strait of Messina which joins the Tyrrhenian Sea in the north with the Ionian Sea in the south.
On the eastern side of the island, in the Province of Syracuse, 1DA086 Carmelo resides in a small commune known as Melilli.
This attractive QTH is said to be roughly 3300m above sea level and close to the Climiti mountains.
From its hill, overlooking Megara Bay and the industrial district of Augusta-Priolo, Melilli’s main economic activities are agriculture and cattle breeding.
It mainly produces, however, citrus fruits, forages, grapes, carobs, cereals, apples and olives.
Interestingly, the word Melilli comes from the Latin Melum, meaning apple tree, referring to the many apple orchards of the area.
1DA086 Carmelo’s home town is also famous for its honey production!
Amongst Melilli’s most important monuments are the Mother Church dedicated to St. Nicholas, the church of St. Sebastian—built in the 18th century—and the church of Sant’Antonio Abate which has bronze bas-reliefs on the portal by Domenico Girbino.
The necropoli close to the town, which dates back to the Bronze Age, are also very interesting.
A peculiarity in Melilli is the so-called Gullet of Martyrs, a beautiful terraced cliff eroded by the sea.
Nearby, the River Marcellino, flowing nearby, offers naturalistic spots and an old necropolis; while the neighbouring salt-mines of Augusta were an important economic resource as far as the end of World War II.
1DA086 Carmelo is set up well for DX success.
He employs a 5/8 vertical antenna and a B-DX 2/11 yagi, which overlook the nearby homes of his neighborhood, while on his radio shack bench top is an Icom transceiver.
“Besides radio communication as a hobby, I make antennas for my friends,” reveals 1DA086 Carmelo.
“As well as constructing antennas, I love surfcast fishing and I’m a member of an association, having participated in the Italian selections in the past…”
Like all genuine connoisseurs of Freeband DX, 1DA086 Carmelo patrols the international call frequency 27.555 MHz USB.
From his home in southern Europe, he’s always on the lookout for rare DX and enthusiastic, also, to swap QSL cards with any operator to authenticate a contact with his station.
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