[BVARC] 2009 Sees Surge of New Amateur Radio Licensees

[Allen R. Brier]

Cross posted from KL7AA reflector

Allen Brier N5XZ / KL5DX
1515 Windloch Lane
Richmond, TX 77406-2533
281-342-1882
713-705-4801 (Cell)
n5xz at arrl.net
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Today's Topics:

   1. 2009 Sees Surge of New Amateur Radio Licensees (kl2gy at aol.com)


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Message: 1
Date: Sun, 24 Jan 2010 05:00:17 -0500
From: kl2gy at aol.com
Subject: [KL7AA] 2009 Sees Surge of New Amateur Radio Licensees
To: kl7aa at mailman.qth.net
Message-ID: <8CC6AF32AC33B16-42A8-25314 at webmail-m039.sysops.aol.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="utf-8"


 
Contact:
Allen Pitts, W1AGP
Media and Public Relations Manager
ARRL
(860) 594-0328
apitts at arrl.org 
 
2009 Sees Surge of New Amateur Radio Licensees
 
Newington, Conn.,  Jan 7, 2010    ? 2009 was a banner year for new people
getting Amateur Radio licensees in the US.  Amateur Radio, often called ?ham
radio,? has been growing over recent years, but 2009 was a record.
According to the ARRL, the national association for Amateur Radio, the FCC
issued more than 30,000 new ham radio licenses in 2009.  
 
A total of 30,144 new licenses were granted in 2009, an increase of almost
7.5 percent from 2008. In 2005, 16,368 new hams joined Amateur Radio's
ranks; just five years later, that number had increased by almost 14,000 --
a whopping 84 percent! The ARRL is the largest of several organizations
trusted by the FCC to administer Amateur Radio license exams in the US. 
 
"When looking at the statistics over the last 10 years, these are some the
highest numbers we've seen," explained Maria Somma, manager of the ARRL
testing programs. "The total number of US amateurs has grown each year."
Currently there are 682,500 licensed Amateur Radio operators in the USA, an
almost 3 percent rise over 2008. In 2008, there were 663,500 licensed
amateurs; there were 655,800 in 2007.   There are approximately 2.5 million
Amateur Radio enthusiasts worldwide.  It was also noted that a much higher
percentage of licensees are going far beyond an entry-level license and
earning higher class (and much more difficult) FCC Amateur Radio licenses.
Despite the predictions of some commentators that Amateur Radio would be
dying with the development of cell phones and the Internet, hams instead
have taken and incorporated those digital and computer technologies into
their wireless hobby, creating many new developments in the process.  
 
Somma applauded all the volunteers whose "hard work and contribution of
countless hours of time helps to ensure the future of Amateur Radio. I am
delighted by these important achievements. 2009 was a very good year for
Amateur Radio and I am excited by the promise of 2010."  For more
information see http://www.Hello-Radio.org. 
### 

Reposted by:


Pete Summers
KL2GY
Public Information Coordinator
Alaska Section of the American Radio Relay League


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