Flight For Life

joedadda2001 · #1 (**permalink**) 10-27-2009, 10:52 PM

I see that Flight For Life medical helicopter (FFL) are using the UHF Medical channels to communicate with Hospitals and back to the Comm center in Waukesha. The frequencies they are using are 463.150 and 468.150. I know FFL used to use them alot when the Milwaukee Med Base used to dispatch for them but when they went to there own dispatch center they went silent and I know they would use nextels alot. They also use a couple of air frquencies like 123.050 and 129.475. Is the use of the UHF frquencies a permant thing?

stateboy · #2 (**permalink**) 10-28-2009, 12:13 AM

First, 468.150 is the input to that former MED repeater and is not really relevant to the conversation because you will not always hear traffic on it unless close enough.

Second, the UHF channel is there as a back-up to their primary AM comm channel. It is generally a last-resort channel.

joedadda2001 · #3 (**permalink**) 10-28-2009, 12:50 AM

I live out here by there main base and I am hearing them using the UHF channels all the time now.

mkescan · #4 (**permalink**) 10-28-2009, 03:09 PM

468.150 can be pretty strong When FFL's get up. I am on 27th & College in Milwaukee and can hear them in Northern Racine County and some of the North Shore area.

joedadda2001 · #5 (**permalink**) 10-28-2009, 03:25 PM

yeah it is very strong. I saw they had applied for a license to use the 2 UHF channels.

sixtytwo · #6 (**permalink**) 10-28-2009, 07:21 PM

Heard quite a bit of traffic on UHF and didn't hear any on AM last weekend.

Perhaps they switched up?

Also, UHF was repeated, which was nice.

joedadda2001 · #7 (**permalink**) 10-28-2009, 09:44 PM

Yeah I saw under the FCC License page that both UHF frequencies are licensed to the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center. I know that they were talking about getting a repeater. Well I guess now it's operational.

stateboy · #8 (**permalink**) 10-29-2009, 12:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by joedadda2001

Yeah I saw under the FCC License page that both UHF frequencies are licensed to the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center. I know that they were talking about getting a repeater. Well I guess now it's operational.

Huh? They have had access to the UHF repeater for years. This is not anything new.

mkescan · #9 (**permalink**) 10-29-2009, 01:38 PM

They may have had access to the UHF repeater for years, but have never used it for FFL's where you would hear FFL on 463.150, at least I have never heard it

joedadda2001 · #10 (**permalink**) 10-29-2009, 07:22 PM

Today FFL Fond Du Lac and FFL Waukesha/Milwaukee responded to a call in Waukesha County and they use a talk group on the Waukesha County TRS for Landing Zone Coordination with fire departments but I also heard there Comm center chime in a few times, I have heard this a couple of times before but a lot more lately.

stateboy · #11 (**permalink**) 10-29-2009, 11:50 PM

Any call in Waukesha County that Flight goes to will be coordinated on the 800 TRS as I believe every fire department in the county, paid or volunteer, is on the TRS now. Of course, VHF options still exist as many departments retained their VHF gear as backup if the TRS is unavailable.

I believe the flight dispatch has several radios on various bands and should have similar capabilities as the helo's. I have heard their dispatch on MARC 2 on a few occasions.

a1emt · #12 (**permalink**) 10-31-2009, 12:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stateboy

Huh? They have had access to the UHF repeater for years. This is not anything new.

Actually the 463/468.150 (MED7) in Milwaukee County is not a "repeated" channel. The helo would talk-in on 468 and the base would reply on 463 in Duplex mode. You had to listen to both freqs in order to hear both sides of a conversation. This arrangement goes back to the days of the Paramedic Systems Motorola APCOR radios, which I had the pleasure of using early in my career (very cool equipment).

The MED7 frequency pair at Milwaukee County EMS has always used PL of 136.5. As another post mentioned, there is a new license for a FB2 repeater on this same pair. I have heard Flight on this repeater using a PL of 123.0... so it does appear there is a new repeater in use.

Jim

WISCOMM · #13 (**permalink**) 11-05-2009, 01:44 PM

I can now confirm the 463.150 - PL123.0 repeater is in operation. Just heard Trauma 1 and Trauma 3 do a radio check with "Base". Full signal about 4 miles SW of Froedtert

Trauma 1 is 12 minutes out from St Lukes, there are troubleshooting a tracking problem.

Repeater sounds REALLY good. There is very little squelch tail on the repeater.

Craig

joedadda2001 · #14 (**permalink**) 11-05-2009, 04:08 PM

I was sitting out by the FFL Waukesha Hanger today and heard them on the 463.150 and it sounds really good. I am glad they are using the UHF channel again because its a lot easier to track them and if I have my camera I can take some good pictures. I know they still were using nextel's the last time I took a tour of there facility.

JGP · #15 (**permalink**) 11-05-2009, 05:59 PM

I think it is best not to use a tone for these frequencies. Just leave it in search to see the tone numbers. I have been seeing 123.0, 131.8, and 136.5. If you use just one tone, you will miss all the other calls.

Joel

mkescan · #16 (**permalink**) 11-05-2009, 07:48 PM

Do they have a name for this channel yet?
I haven't heard it in use yet here at Milwaukee / Oak Creek border.

I am going to add it to Milwaukee County Suburban, Milwaukee Fire & Waukesha County Fire feeds to see what pops up.
Waukesha County feed scanner is about a block west of Germantown Fire Dept with 800 beam antenna about 25 to 30 feet up pointed to Menomonee Falls site, and gets the 463/468.150 Med Base (Med 7) pretty good

JGP · #17 (**permalink**) 11-07-2009, 08:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mkescan

Do they have a name for this channel yet?
I haven't heard it in use yet here at Milwaukee / Oak Creek border.

I am going to add it to Milwaukee County Suburban, Milwaukee Fire & Waukesha County Fire feeds to see what pops up.
Waukesha County feed scanner is about a block west of Germantown Fire Dept with 800 beam antenna about 25 to 30 feet up pointed to Menomonee Falls site, and gets the 463/468.150 Med Base (Med 7) pretty good

I haven't heard anyone call this channel by name, but the name on the license, WQKP742, is the Milwaukee Regional Medical Center in Waukesha.

Tim · #18 (**permalink**) 11-07-2009, 12:02 PM

<SNIP>Any call in Waukesha County that Flight goes to will be coordinated on the 800 TRS as I believe every fire department in the county, paid or volunteer, is on the TRS now<SNIP>

Hiya All...

Finally I have internet access again. Its been a few weeks without it. anyways, I figured I would chime in here.

I'm pretty sure Lannon Fire Department is still on VHF. Although, they are dispatched by Meno Falls on thier old dispatch freq (155.9400) which is patched to WCTRS so technically they can be heard on WCTRS. I remember seeing on here or Scan-Wis that they are getting a grant of some kind to finally join WCTRS in the next coupla years.

As for 463.1500, Racine County also uses this as a repeater for Ambulance to Hospital Communications .

463.1500 Burlington Memorial Hospital ER (141.3)
463.1500 St Mary's Hospital (131.8)

I can hear all three from home here on 27th/college area.

Tim
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