Do NIFC channels have tones now?

[norcalscan]

For 2020, tone protecting the NIFC ground tacticals on extended incidents is new. It did not happen during previous fires in California/Region 5. NIFC tacticals used locally on forests for day-to-day is not tone protected. Basically the bulk of extended forest fires this season has been lightning busts, which bring a lot of separate incidents at once. They realized tone protecting the NIFC tacs allows them to reuse them a lot closer than they normally would. Firefighters were having a rough time when they heard 2 other fires on their tac, unrelated to them, while 5000ft up on a ridgeline. That sets up radio fatigue and a safety issue real quick.

Same thing with NIFC Command repeaters now. They've always ran tone on the input as that's what you do with repeaters to protect from intermod etc. However 2020 is the first year they're pushing tones on the output, and tone protecting the output on the 205's. I'm seeing the same tone assigned per incident. So Incident A would have Tone 2 for both both NIFC Cmd and NIFC Tacs, and Incident B would have tone 5, etc.

The tone will be assigned per incident, there won't be a pattern or something we need to submit to The Database.

 

[es93546]

For 2020, tone protecting the NIFC ground tacticals on extended incidents is new. It did not happen during previous fires in California/Region 5. NIFC tacticals used locally on forests for day-to-day is not tone protected. Basically the bulk of extended forest fires this season has been lightning busts, which bring a lot of separate incidents at once. They realized tone protecting the NIFC tacs allows them to reuse them a lot closer than they normally would. Firefighters were having a rough time when they heard 2 other fires on their tac, unrelated to them, while 5000ft up on a ridgeline. That sets up radio fatigue and a safety issue real quick.

Same thing with NIFC Command repeaters now. They've always ran tone on the input as that's what you do with repeaters to protect from intermod etc. However 2020 is the first year they're pushing tones on the output, and tone protecting the output on the 205's. I'm seeing the same tone assigned per incident. So Incident A would have Tone 2 for both both NIFC Cmd and NIFC Tacs, and Incident B would have tone 5, etc.

The tone will be assigned per incident, there won't be a pattern or something we need to submit to The Database.

I will try to dig around in my files and notes. I saw direction that tones would be used on commands and tacs about 3-4 years ago. I've noticed them being used on ICS205's prior to this year. I don't remember if those 205's were from California, but I think they were. Seems to me that they were used on the Rough Fire on the Sierra in 2015. I will try to check, but I've been very busy lately.

 

[es93546]

I just found IAP's from the Northern Rockies GACC and the Great Basin GACC from 2017 that showed TX/RX tones on the NIFC Tacs. The Rough Fire of 2015 did not have tones on the tacs. Ok, I just found an IAP for the Hirz and Delta Fires of 2018 on the Shasta-T and the 205 shows tones, RX/TX on both the tacs and commands, one tone for all of them. Now I found another, from the 2017 Salmon August Complex on the Klamath NF, with the same RX/TX tone on all NIFC commands and tacs. I found one in South Ops as well, it was from 2017 or 2018. So it looks as though there was direction to tone NIFC tacs and commands issued in the spring of 2017. This would be based on what happened in 2016 I imagine.

 

[norcalscan]

Ok, I just found an IAP for the Hirz and Delta Fires of 2018 on the Shasta-T and the 205 shows tones, RX/TX on both the tacs and commands, one tone for all of them.

Oh wow, I explicitly looked at the old 205s from 2016 on, and 2018 Delta was one of them. I didn't see the tone protection. Now I'm wondering what I overlooked.

 

[es93546]

Oh wow, I explicitly looked at the old 205s from 2016 on, and 2018 Delta was one of them. I didn't see the tone protection. Now I'm wondering what I overlooked.

What I've overlooked is the copy of a NIFC memo that provides direction requiring tone use on the NIFC system at all times. I thought it was in my notes, my files, on my computers and my own paper frequency directories/agency information notebooks I carry while traveling. I've probably looked right at it and not noticed it!