W4UVV
Member
For over the past 10+ years Hopewell and Ft. Lee have been shared users on the first Motorola dual frequency shared controller system (i.e., Ft. Lee on 400 mhz. and Hopewell on 800 mhz.) installed in the country. Although Prince George Co. was invited to be a shared user, it declined and subsequently replaced its vhf repeaters with uhf repeaters.. Defense Supply Center also declined to participate and installed its own 400 mhz. trs.
The touted dual frequency shared controller system is linked to the Tidewater area (i.e., Naval Base Norfolk, etc,) allowing for interoperability between system users. In reality that never happened because apparently the various shared user's dispatchers complained that hearing comms from other system users were distractions with comms to their respective system's units.
Now Ft. Lee techs expeditiously are in the process of porting to its 380 mhz. DOD trs. Subsequently use of the 400 mhz. trs will be abandoned. That leaves Hopewell as the only remaining trs user on this area's portion of the dual frequency controller system. Will DOD continue indefinitely to fund and maintain a portion of the system with only one non-DOD user? I think we know what the answer is to that question.
So Hopewell will have to either install its own trs infrastructure or become a user on an existing 800 mhz. trs. Rumor is Hopewell possibly could be another shared user like Colonial Heights and VSU on the Chesterfield Co.'s portion of the Chesterfield/Richmond/Henrico system.
The touted dual frequency shared controller system is linked to the Tidewater area (i.e., Naval Base Norfolk, etc,) allowing for interoperability between system users. In reality that never happened because apparently the various shared user's dispatchers complained that hearing comms from other system users were distractions with comms to their respective system's units.
Now Ft. Lee techs expeditiously are in the process of porting to its 380 mhz. DOD trs. Subsequently use of the 400 mhz. trs will be abandoned. That leaves Hopewell as the only remaining trs user on this area's portion of the dual frequency controller system. Will DOD continue indefinitely to fund and maintain a portion of the system with only one non-DOD user? I think we know what the answer is to that question.
So Hopewell will have to either install its own trs infrastructure or become a user on an existing 800 mhz. trs. Rumor is Hopewell possibly could be another shared user like Colonial Heights and VSU on the Chesterfield Co.'s portion of the Chesterfield/Richmond/Henrico system.
