VTac Frequency Use?

[BirkenVogt]

I was wondering if the "VTac" frequencies (narrowband, low power, nationwide) have seen any use this summer. I remember last summer a contractor came into the radio shop wanting help because he had been to a fire up by Redding where they were using one and he did not have it.

These are the freqs (all narrowband)

155.7525 VCall
151.1375 VTac 1
154.4525 VTac 2
158.7375 VTac 3
159.4725 VTac 4

Birken

 

[scankid2591]

Someone is using VTac 3 in Monterey County. It almost sounds like a CHP channel. DPL is 131.

 

[WayneH]

Are you sure it isn't bleed-over? I get that once and a while and given the non-standard MA tone it doesn't seem right.

-Wayne

 

[scankid2591]

Probably is a bleed-over, but I have no idea who it is here. You'd think being that it's on the CDF Radio Plan it would be CSQ, but I'm more than likely wrong.

 

[BirkenVogt]

The VTac frequencies are supposed to be 156.7 which is becoming the common standard tone for itinerant type stuff. However I have all my radios programmed to encode the tone but not decode it because who knows whether whoever you are trying to talk to has their radio programmed to encode that tone. The fact is if using it, it will likely have been assigned by a comm unit leader who would have presumably monitored for interference first. And if using it, you will probably be busy anyway and only using it for a short duration so any interference will be walked over by the other units or ignored anyway.

Just trying to get a handle on if it is being used much yet, with all the fires going and all.

Birken