Life Link ARMER

PKnight56

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Hi Folks!

I've got a friend living in Minneapolis trying to monitor Life Link off of a BCD436HP. He's getting other traffic but no traffic on any LL talkgroups. I am from NC where we have a similar statewide interop, but are these talkgroups broadcast statewide or just site-specific? As in, could the reason he's not hearing anything be because no radios are affiliated with the site he's monitoring?

Trying to find out if it's a programming error or designed that way, as I'm not from the area.

Thanks for any help you can provide :)
 

n0esc

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I am sure someone will chime in to correct me with a more technically proficient answer but my interpretation is that ARMER is a layered structure. Some TGs and users will have access statewide, all the way down to users that may only have access to a single specific tower. EMS providers that cover larger parts of the state will have statewide roaming talkgroups that they are supposed to use when transporting to avoid loading traffic onto towers unnecessarily.

As a specific answer to your question it is likely that there won't be any affiliations if he is in Minneapolis. Speaking from work experience you will hear the pilot or crew confirm landing zone info with the hospital, on a hospital TG. In flight will be on normal air comm frequencies, and they will monitor the 2115 Flight Following TG to stay in contact with their Ops Center for updates. You would only hear dispatch for the initial call if you are close enough to those specific tower sites.

You can see how active 2115 (FF) is here: Flight Follow - Statewide/Life Link III - Air Medical Service Group Calls Live compared to say the Anoka dispatch TG, for LifeLink 4, which was last dispatched at 20:17 on the 30th.
 

bearcatrp

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I know lifelink went P25. Have seen them listed in my log from time to time. I’ll check my log to see what frequency got logged around St. Cloud.
 

mmtstc

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The base talkgroups are most often only heard on the local system versus flight following which is a statewide talkgroups that they use to communicate with dispatch once they have begun to start up the aircraft and while away from base. North Memorial is the same behavior, it’s just that they are encrypted. Mayo as well, they call their flight following talkgroup airroam.

fixed wing operations for all do not use ARMER. Only helicopter service in Minnesota not using ARMER is guardian flight in Roseau as they don’t do scene flights.
 

peq387ab

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In order to hear the LL dispatch 2115 a radio has to be affiliated to that said site in order to hear it. Rule of thumb is you will hear that talk group on a site close to their base or if they are flying over and their ship radio or a crew portable affiliates to a site. In addition you were hear the dispatch talk group for a said base only on those site or sites by their said base too
 

KA0XR

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Related question, but has anyone heard recent activity (Twin Cities and along the I-35 corridor to Duluth) on 155.340 MHz? I recall it is still licensed to many users.
 

mmtstc

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Not sure how much activity it gets, but i would imagine it is still licensed for Wisconsin ambulances coming into Minnesota that are not WISCOM users (both Duluth hospitals have WISCOM report talkgroups in addition to their ARMER talkgroups). I know East and West MRCC's still have VMED28 on their consoles for out of state ambulances and the couple counties that didnt migrate to ARMER.

tl:dr - I dont think parking on VMED28 would be incredibly fruitful.
 

peq387ab

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Echoing V-MED-28, several counties in out state still have their licenses with either county or hospital level kept current. Most of northwest Minnesota EMS services now operate on ARMER, other than Red Lake County for sure and Marshall County might still be on VHF, if they haven’t already switched. But North Dakota in bound EMS units can be heard on Med 28 on VHF, within those North Dakota border counties, from time to time.
 
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