Airforce MARS Special Event - Nov. 8-11, 2025

 Details at: https://afmars.com/

MARS announces dates for 60-meter interoperability

 from SouthGate:

The Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS) has announced dates in 2021 during which MARS members will operate on 60 meters for interoperability with the amateur radio community. Some dates coincide with quarterly Department of Defense Communications Exercises (COMEX).

The first exercise will be on Feb 23-27, 2021.

Read the article with the full 2021 schedule at: http://www.southgatearc.org/news/2021/january/dates-for-60-meter-interoperability.htm#.YB6rduhKhPY

MARS civilian volunteers stand ready for emergencies in Syracuse

Very interesting article on the DVIDs web site explaining the MARS program at Hancock Field Air National Guard Base in Syracuse NY.

The article shares stories of several area Hams and also that the Syracuse MARS team is one of the most active in New York state.

The Military Auxiliary Radio System is run by the Air Force and Army, and manned by civilian amateur radio operators who donate their time and talents to maintaining an emergency short-wave radio communications system to back up traditional communications network

According to Master Sgt. Linda Walker, 174th Radio and Spectrum Non-Commissioned Officer, hosting the MARS station is beneficial to the 174th Attack Wing because they will be able to provide communication in any type of emergencies including nuclear attacks and natural disasters.

“We’d be happy to train up anybody on how to use the equipment,” said Bridges. “If there was enough interest, we’d even teach classes for people to get their amateur radio license.

If interested in joining a USAF MARS team, contact their hotline at (888)778-6277(MARS) or send an email to join@afmars-mil.us

Read the full article: https://www.dvidshub.net/news/384757/mars-civilian-volunteers-stand-ready-emergencies-syracuse

ANNUAL ARMED FORCES DAY CROSS-BAND TEST (SAT. MAY 11th 2019)

The Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard are co-sponsoring the annual Military/Amateur Radio Crossband Communications Test. Although Armed Forces Day had traditionally been celebrated on the third Saturday in May -- this year it will be on May 11th 2019 as to not conflict with the Dayton Hamvention.

The annual celebration features traditional military-to-amateur crossband communications SSB voice and Morse code tests. These tests give Amateur Radio operators and short wave listeners an opportunity to demonstrate their individual technical skills and to receive recognition from the appropriate military radio station for their proven expertise. QSL cards will be provided to stations making contact with the military stations.

MARS exercise - COMEX 18-1

Coming this month MARS (Military Auxiliary Radio System) will be holding its First Quarter 2018 exercise from the February 20^th to the 23rd called COMEX 18-1.  Again, I will be collecting county status reports from members within the county and with those around Oswego County.   I will be running a net on the Fulton 147.150 repeater and will be on 60 meters band contacting other amateur operators.  As of right now I am not sure which time I will be on the Air to collect information, I will send out emails and make comments on the Pathfinder Nets leading up the exercise. At the same time collecting weather reports from the local air ports.

Notice of exercise this weekend: COMEX 17-4 SIMULATED WARNING MESSAGE

 from KC2WI; Pete Newell; ARES Section Emergency Coordinator, Northern New York

EXERCISE************ EXERCISE ************* EXERCISE

I am sending this to you for information and action. Please pass this info on to all hams and please make every effort to participate this weekend November 4~5, 2017.

People in the know are VERY concerned about the effect of a large scale coronal mass ejection (CME) from the sun, or of the EMP from detonatioin of a nuclear weapon high in the atmosphere. The former is known to have occured and is predicted to happen again. Given the current state of political affairs, the latter is a distinct possibility either from North Korea or if some terrorist organization gets control of a nuclear weapon.

Either would devastate the power grid and any equipment connected to it. The result would be widespread loss of electrical power and by extension virtually everthing else that society depends on. Most unprotected electronics would be destroyed, especially if connected to any external wires like power cords, the power grid, or antennas, or even ground wires.

http://nnyara.net/COMEX17-4/Electronics_and_Communication_Vulnerability.ppt <<read this and you will see the potential magnitude of the problem.

In the case of a CME we would have about 12 hours between the event and when the effects hit Earth. I would get notice by email, text, phone from MARS. I would try to pass it on to you. You would want to disconnect absolutely everything from power grid and further protect whatever possible.

It is assumed that at lease some hams would have advance warning, could protect equipment ear or some would have spare equipment , and therefore could operate after the CME. Since virtually all other systems would be inoperable, amateur radio could be the only method of gathering info for initial damage assessment.

Therefore, MARS has been tasked by the DOD with contacting Amateur Radio Operators to gather this info.

DOD Contingency Communications Exercise; COMEX 17-3

The third quarterly national DOD contingency communications exercise COMEX 17-3 will take place July 23-27, 2017. One component of these exercises is using Amateur Radio to collect information about critical infrastructure and facilities  (power, transportation, communication, sanitation, medical, etc) in every county in the US. MARS stations will be active on the ham bands (using their Amateur call signs except on 60 Meters where they will use their MARS call signs) soliciting information. 

Please make an effort to contact one or more MARS operators dring this COMEX.  Contacts are not limited to ARES/RACES members. MARS operators are looking for contact with any ham radio operator. However this would be an execllent opportunity to set up a local ARES net as would be active in a large scale emergency or disaster situation.

Please note that while you you can make up any scenario and report simulated conditions for your local exercise, MARS operators will be collecting actual condition reports.  So unless there is actually a power outage, flooded roads, etc. you would report that all is well for the purposes of the national COMEX.

I intend to be available on the New York State Phone Traffic Emergency Net at 6 PM on 3925 at least a couple of times during the exercise period, and possibly other times and frequencies. If you would like to set up a specific time/frequency please contact me by email reply. Please check the nnyara.net web site and/or the Facebook page  (http://facebook.com/NNYARAhams)  and group (https://www.facebook.com/groups/NNYARA/ ) for updated schedule info. There are other MARS stations in and around NNY who will be on HF or local repeaters.

Pete Newell KC2WI

ARES Section Emergency Coordinator, Northern New York http://nnyara.net

Coordinator, Lewis County Emergency Coordinators Group http://lcecg.org

ARES EC / RACES RO, Lewis County

MARS - Military Auxiliary Radio System LMSC NNY - AFA2CQ

MARS Exercise 2/25 - 2/28

MARS exercise 17-1 / 25 February 2017 - 28 February 2017

The United States Department of Defense and Department of Homeland Security with the United States Army and Air Force MARS system is holding its first exercise of the year 2017.

The scenario simulates a total loss of communication, Internet and basic resources  after an undetermined national incident.

The Military and Department of Defense is asking for Amateur stations to provide basic county information to MARS stations during the exercise. This is REAL WORLD and as such the information provided to military stations should be of actual availability of resources IF your county has no problems you will report as such. If there is an incident that effects any governmental resources such as transportation, medical, communication, or hospitals you will report what resource is affected. 

Again this is REAL WORLD information so if there is no breakdown in any services you will report all clear in the county you are reporting.

MARS stations will be on the 60meter interoperability channel 1 (5330.5) and channel 2 ( 5346.5) to collect information at various time throughout the exercise. 

As of now stations will be monitoring at 12pm and 3pm on Saturday the 25th.

12pm and 3pm on Sunday the 26th, and at 3pm and 6pm on Monday the 27th.

Also any stations who want to collect information from their surrounding counties can provide them at those times or they can be emailed to this station to be included in the report no later than Monday at 6pm EST

Thanks for all your help and for providing information..

Joseph M. Tedesco KC2DKP/AAR2JI

Western New York Section Emergency Coordinator United States Army MARS.

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ARRL Western New York Section

Section Manager: Laura Mueller, N2LJM

n2ljm@arrl.org

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Military Exercise - Amateur Operators Needed

Military Exercise COMEX 16-4 Amateur Operators Needed 10/30-10/31

The United States Department of Defense with the Departments of United States Army and Air Force and United States MARS are holding their fourth quarter exercise.

     This exercise is an continuous 48hr exercise comprising of Military, Government, and MARS stations testing the continuity of communications during an unknown event that will simulate a wide spread communications failure.

     For military stations the exercise runs Sunday 30 October through Tuesday 1 November 2016 but Amateurs have been asked to participate in a few key specific times throughout the days of Sunday the 30th and Monday the 31st.

     The DOD and Military command have asked for Amateurs in Western New York to help in this exercise by providing simple county status information for their stations at specified times on the 60 Meter INTEROP channel 1 throughout the exercise.