From a pocket-sized island of the Indonesian province of South Kalimantan, the Dx Adventure Radio Club (DA-RC) is thrilled to introduce to you accredited ham operator and enthusiastic 27 MHz DXer, 91DA888 Ravie.
An experienced IOTA DXpeditioner and successful DX Hunter, 91DA888 Ravie (See pictured right) connects with our club in January 2021, eager to immerse himself in the 11m Community and outstanding conditions of the world’s best HF DX band.
91DA888 Ravie lives on picturesque Laut Island (Also spelled Laoet), in the Kota Baru Regency, southeast of the larger island of Borneo.
In line with the World IOTA Program, Laut Island is part of the hotly pursued Kalimantan’s Coastal Islands East IOTA group, sharing the reference OC-166 with a number of other adjacent islands.
These include Balabalangan Islands, Sebuku, Bilangbilangan, Bunyu, Derawan, Kakaban, Lari, Larian, Laut, Maratua, Nunukan, Panjang, Sambit and Tarakan.
The respected Islands Base Online (IBO) data base confirms that neither Ravie’s island, nor any other of the Kalimantan Coastal Islands East IOTA entity, has ever before been active on Freeband frequencies.
Breath-taking news for serious Island Hunters in the 11m Community, therefore, is that Ravie’s appointment to the DA-RC, a club famous for its DXpedition work, will now make this ‘Most Wanted IOTA Reference’ possible.
According to Google Earth, Laut Island lies in the Makassar Strait, 169 km east of Banjarmasin city.
100 km long north to south and 30 km wide east to west, it covers an area of about 2062 square km.
An interesting fact is that this island used to be a kingdom, namely the Sea Island Kingdom (Poelau Laoet) or the Sigam Kingdom.
91DA888 Ravie’s membership application lists the town of Kotabaru, at the northern tip of the island, as his the site of his home QTH and radio shack.
Kotabaru is reportedly the administrative capital of the regency and the chief shipping port.
“Much of the island is covered with sago and coconut palms and mangrove trees,” explains 91DA888 Ravie.
“The main industry is coal mining while copra, pepper, and coal are the major exports.
91DA888 Ravie’s shack oozes DX-appeal.
For HF operations (Phone & Digi modes such as FT8), Kenwood TS-850s + DSP-100, ICOM IC-7300, Barrett 2050 and ICOM IC-718 transceivers sit alongside some impressive DXcessories to fulfil a world-class station.
Outside, twin yagi antennas provide the vivacity needed to “CQ” on numerous bands, including 11m, and their proximity to the shores of the Java Sea gives him an outstanding ground plane and uninterrupted pathway for DX.
91DA888 Ravie also enjoys operating on VHF.
His station here consists of a Kenwood TR-9130, Kenwood TR-9000, Motorola GM-338, Motorola GM-3688, ICOM IC-2100 and ICOM IC-2300H transceivers.
“I’ve known radio comms since junior high school,” Ravie explains, “some 33 years ago!”
In addition to time spent behind the microphone chasing rare DX on any one of a number of bands, 91DA888 Ravie also loves designing and flying kites, a pastime he’s enjoyed since childhood.
Traditional giant kites up to 4m in width and almost 10m in length are made and flown on the island in the company of friends and, as the pictures show, some of the colourful and intricate designs are incredible.
Bike riding with his 2 children and motorcycles are other interests.
For employment, Ravie works at the port in the area of Health Quarantine.
His job is to check on ships entering the Laut island area to keep infectious diseases coming from outside.
On weekends and holidays, 91DA888 Ravie looks forward to undertaking a number of exciting dx adventures during Cycle 25.
On his hitlist include a Summits On The Air (SOTA) of Mount Bamega in the northeast part of the island; Lighthouse On The Air (LOTA) work at Bukit Balingkar (Gunung Lampu) Light House (IDO-105) and further IOTA work, not just from OC-166 dxstinations, but also the remote Laut Kecil Islands group (OC-268).
Like most DA-RC Members, 91DA888 Ravie is QRV on the international call frequency, 27.555 MHz USB, for all of his dx adventures on Freeband frequencies.
He’s also partial to a rag chew on the Indo-chat frequency, 27.305 MHz USB, which is always a hive of 91 Division activity.
A request for a QSL card to confirm any contact made with his station on the 11m band can be made via the details below…
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