KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas Metropolis Marines, lively and reserve, competed in Canadian Communications and Digital Department-hosted train Noble Skywave, a military-led, high-frequency (HF) competitors.
“Noble Skywave is a radio hybrid mission competitors to find out who can most effectively use HF radio expertise,” mentioned U.S. Marine Corps Gunnery Sgt. Michael R. McKenzie, Inspector Teacher Regimental Communications Chief, Fight Logistics Regiment (CLR) 4, 4th Marine Logistics Group, Marine Forces Reserve.
McKenzie is a local of York, Nebraska, and graduated from York Excessive College. He joined the Marine Corps as a result of he “had a calling to serve his nation,” he mentioned.
McKenzie was the general coordinator and planner for his crew of communication Marines and ensured their participation within the occasion. He helped put together the tools and supervised all 48 hours of the competitors.
Noble Skywave, first initiated in 2013, happened this yr from Oct. 24- 28. This yr’s train hosted the biggest variety of individuals together with home and worldwide groups unfold throughout the globe.
There have been “greater than 429 army items from throughout all branches of militaries, lively and reserve items, in addition to 13 accomplice nations together with Canada, Peru, the UK, Poland, Australia, and Latvia,” McKenzie said.
4 communication Marines from CLR-4 based mostly out of Kansas Metropolis, Missouri, participated within the occasion and have been assigned the decision signal US-295. Though Canada is the main nation in planning and creating the train, every international locations’ crew needed to work collectively so as to collect provides and arrange their very own radio station so as to join with different stations.
“Their [CLR-4] station included programming radios, planning their communications shot to incorporate the look-angle of their antenna, constructing their antenna, the ability requirement, environmental elements, and conducting lengthy distance voice communications,” mentioned McKenzie.
The army has employed HF radios as a army functionality because the Thirties. In keeping with McKenzie, HF is just not relied on as steadily due to different superior applied sciences like satellite tv for pc communications (SATCOM) or pc and knowledge communications.
Nevertheless, HF expertise remains to be a useful asset for home and worldwide militaries to grasp and implement. HF radio frequencies trigger vitality to reradiate from the environment again down on the similar frequency, bouncing the radio waves again in direction of Earth. This course of is what permits connections the power to journey internationally with out the usage of satellites, that is vital as a result of HF is the one viable substitute of past line-of-sight communications to SATCOM.
Through the competitors, the Marines’ longest shot of communication was constructed from Kansas Metropolis to Peru. In addition they established clear strains of communication with items in Canada.
“Total it was an ideal expertise and an ideal alternative for the Marines’ development as they discovered expertise of lengthy vary communication photographs and the steadiness between the science and the artwork of excessive frequency radio communications in a dynamic surroundings,” McKenzie said.
Though Noble Skywave is a contest, the spirit of the occasion revolves round fostering camaraderie and, finally, understanding how every nation can work collectively to turn out to be higher when wanted.
“In our present world of joint army operations that the U.S. Marine Corps is part of, the power to speak with our companions is a necessity. Communication strategies are completely different for every nation, however coming collectively and studying and exchanging strategies and suggestions permits us to remain prepared with our companions.”
