Mediflight

[OKMEDIC]

Ok, haven't posted on here much if even at all. A little new to the whole scanning thing. Just a quick question about mediflight. I know that they are now on 800mhz. but how can they communicate back to their comm. center when they are so far away? Is the 800 system that complex? Just curious.. Hope I didn't post this in the wrong forum. thanks for any input.

 

[car2back]

Ok, haven't posted on here much if even at all. A little new to the whole scanning thing. Just a quick question about mediflight. I know that they are now on 800mhz. but how can they communicate back to their comm. center when they are so far away? Is the 800 system that complex? Just curious.. Hope I didn't post this in the wrong forum. thanks for any input.

Medflight's Talkgroups are on the (not quite) state-wide Motorola Type II 800mhz trunked radio system. Their 800 radios "allocate" to the nearest and/or strongest Trunked radio site much like a cell phone roams towers. The sites are linked together by either T1 or microwave (I can't remember) into a "Smartzone" system so, hypothetically as long the medflight unit is somewhere where they have radio coverage on 1 of the 11 sites in the state, the radio traffic willl be linked to their comm center.

Here's some more info in the Radio Reference Wiki: Motorola Smartzones

Hope that explains it a little Medic!

 

[freqscout]

Also when they are in the air they greatly increase their communications range since they are so far up there. Sometimes they lose communications when on the ground and reestablish the comms in the air. When on-scene they have a radio where they can talk to the agency in that area that they are providing service to (usually VHF/UHF). This becomes the more important radio traffic when they are getting close due to the obvious med conditions and landing zone information.

 

[dbestfirefighter]

Just to give you a little idea of how much distance above ground helps out. Myself and a fellow ham went flying about 4 weeks ago and was about 2000 feet above the ground in Pauls Valley and was able to talk into one of the OKC repeaters on a 1/4 (i think that was the power setting) of a watt using a motorola handheld. Now thats DXing...lol

 

[WX5JCH]

Out west they use Mutual aid 155.490 and relay their position thru the local PD back to their dispater using a 800 number they call. Simple and it works.

Jim

 

[red8]

We have something like that on our system where there are multiple
repeater sites throug hout the state, I know because on my scanner
I have been able to monitor the State Police Troops in Louisiana.

 

[car2back]

We have something like that on our system where there are multiple
repeater sites throug hout the state, I know because on my scanner
I have been able to monitor the State Police Troops in Louisiana.

red8, the Lousiana State Police use a Motorola Type II TRS network almost exactly like Oklahoma's DPS system.

 

[OKMEDIC]

Thanks guys. I sort of figured it was something like that, just wasn't sure. That makes alot of since. (or is it sence?) Hell you know what i mean..

 

[red8]

I know that Phil , what I'm talking about with the Smartzone 800 system is I can receive all nine State Police troops and that there are multiple sitesfor each repeater, I know it provides state wide communications for sure .

 

[freqscout]

Red I think that he was just trying to back up what you said and make some clarification for those of us who know nothing about the LA system.
And yes, that kind of coverage is the beauty of Smartzone. Happy scanning.

 

[davido662002]

Mediflight was busy last night, I was monitoring on 800, since I live 2 blks from norman reg, med 1 was heading to Tulsa, and asked Base to transfer her to lifeflight. anyone know what speed they cruise at, I guess that they lifted off from OKC and said they were 58 min to tulsa.

 

[CommShrek]

anyone know what spped they cruise at,

That answer would depend on different variables don't you think? Wind speed, wind direction, altitude, etc?

 

[fast2okc]

Speed

anyone know what spped they cruise at,

Mediflight flies Eurocopter EC130 aircraft.

http://www.eurocopter.com/ec130/fperformances.html

Got your metric conversion tables handy?

--fast2okc

 

[Chaos703]

That makes alot of since. (or is it sence?) Hell you know what i mean..

I only mention this because he asked: It's "sense." You can remember it by imagining the "e" as a little x-ray of a head since "making sense" occurs inside the head. I have no idea on how to remember to use the second "s" instead of a "c." Your on your own there.

I'll give all of you who are stunned by my brilliance a moment to catch your breath.

Now I have question: Once when I was very young I was talking to a guy who owned a radio shop here in Tulsa. He went on a tirade about cops who had the audacity to ask him to open the circuits in their Regency radios so they could simply program in whatever frequency they needed. The guy said he always refused to do it because "being a cop doesn't mean they have the right throw out the FCC's rules. They're only licensed to broadcast on their department's frequencies and I ain't gonna help them break the law!"

So, how does the FCC licensing work on these hospital helicopters? I assume that they MUST be equipped and allowed to broadcast on whatever frequency they need at any time they need it. Life and death situations. So is their some kind of license waver they get? Or is there a license you can acquire that gives you free range?


p.s. "Alot" isn't a world. It should be "a lot." I'm so sorry, I'll shut up now.

 

[PolarBear25]

They Also use 462.950 to talk to OKC F.D.

 

[PolarBear25]

MediFlight also uses 462.950 to talk to OKC F.D.

 

[freqscout]

With formal mutual aid agreements/requests you are giving the other agencies the permission to use their license.

The "agency" is licensed and may use it as long as it is within the rules and scope of their grant (usage and quantity authorized). Any user can use the frequency as long as the user has the approval of the agency that is licensed. Many agencies are initiating Multi-Agency Coordination Compacts (I believe those are the right words) that are basically prearranged Mutual Aid agreements.

Now to prosecute on something like that the licensee would have to state that he did not and does not want that person on his frequencies. You would be hard pressed to find an agency that says that they did not want the Medi-Flight bird (for instance) on their frequencies when they requested them. Now on the same side of the token the agency is also responsible for that use on their system and ensuring that it is in compliance with rules and regs. There are exceptions to this however that do not ANYONE else on their channels.

The other thing to consider is that if it is emergency health and welfare traffic then you can step outside of your license as long as you cease once the emergency has ended. Where you come into problems there is if you violate a state law of interfering with official radio communications...there is always a catch somewhere I guess.

 

[PolarBear25]

Ok!!!!!

 

[Chaos703]

So it sounds to me like the guy who refused to open the old Regency programming for the rural cops was just being persnickety old fart? From what you're saying (very good and helpful info for which I thank you, sir) rural cops who pop back and forth on each others freqs are not breaking the law at all, right? Or it's a gray area at best.

 

[PolarBear25]

Medflight's Talkgroups are on the (not quite) state-wide Motorola Type II 800mhz trunked radio system. Their 800 radios "allocate" to the nearest and/or strongest Trunked radio site much like a cell phone roams towers. The sites are linked together by either T1 or microwave (I can't remember) into a "Smartzone" system so, hypothetically as long the medflight unit is somewhere where they have radio coverage on 1 of the 11 sites in the state, the radio traffic willl be linked to their comm center.

Here's some more info in the Radio Reference Wiki: Motorola Smartzones

Hope that explains it a little Medic!

Together by either T1 or microwave.. Both