Example of Amateur Radio Network Communications

This primer gives basic procedures that are used by amateur radio operators during times of emergency.

The aspect of amateur radio that is most visible to the public is net operation. This page gives an example of a dialog between NCS in a directed net and a station having a message for another station. This example illustrates many of the concepts described in this site. The example is taken from the Salt Lake County (Utah) ARES website (Training material for 1/25/2012).

SHELTER ONE:  NET CONTROL, THIS IS SHELTER ONE, over
NET CONTROL: SHELTER ONE, NET CONTROL, over
SHELTER ONE:  I have a message for RED CROSS, over
NET CONTROL: RED CROSS, NET CONTROL, over
RED CROSS:      RED CROSS, over
NET CONTROL: SHELTER ONE has message. Call them on this frequency, over 
RED CROSS:      Roger, out to you. SHELTER ONE, RED CROSS, over
SHELTER ONE:  Is Accommodations Manager at your location? Over
RED CROSS:      Will check and call you back, over
SHELTER ONE:  Roger. Back to Net Control, out

Notice the conciseness of the messages. Notice the use of tactical call signs. Notice that the transmitting station is always identified. Notice that the station at a shelter notifies NCS that he/she has a message for the station at the Red Cross site. Notice that NCS notifies the station at the Red Cross site that a message is pending for that location. Notice that each transmitting station ends a transmission with an "over" to notify the other station it is their turn to transmit. Notice NCS arranges for the two stations to talk by telling the station at Red Cross to call the station at the shelter. Notice that NCS makes a decision to have the message sent on the net frequency. Notice the use of "roger" to acknowledge receipt of the message. Notice that stations finishing the dialog end their transmissions with an "out". Notice that NCS does not say "out", because NCS is always online and in control of the net.

If the net includes hams inexperienced in net operation, the NCS might tell SHELTER ONE to standby and then the NCS calls RED CROSS.

NET CONTROL: SHELTER ONE, standby. RED CROSS, NET CONTROL, over

In addition, NET CONTROL might say THIS IS before giving his call each time.

NET CONTROL: SHELTER ONE, THIS IS NET CONTROL, over

The degree of formality depends on the experience of the members of the net.