Welcome, I am Derek Hilleard G4CQM. I was first licensed back in early 1969 as G8CIW and operated exclusively on 144MHz. DXing on 2M soon became an obsession.

In 1973 I passed the Post Office morse test and obtained G4CQM shortly after.

Pictured above is G4CQM operating alongside colleagues in the 1974 CQ World Wide DX Contest on 80 Meters from a tower block building in London. We were using a full size dipole aimed States Side at 250 feet AGL. The rig was an FTDX560 and Datong speech processor. Unfortunately too much enthusiasm and Barley Wine resulted in burning out the PA tubes, sorry Stan!

For a few years I moved to the Fifteen and Ten Meter bands and started regular skeds with Harry Stickley VQ9HCS on Astove Island in the Seychelles.

In September 1975 I went out to meet with Harry on Mahé Island, I applied for the call of VQ9DHD and operated from the Morne Seychellois National Park on Mahé island which has the highest peak in Seychelles. Contacts back to the UK using just 30 watts SSB on 21MHz were easy even during Solar Minimum from such a fantastic location. This trip was very eventful we even had a meeting with the then Prime Minister of the Seychelles James Mancham and his Foreign Minister Mr Joubert.

In the Autumn of 1975 I operated in the CQ World Wide DX Contest from back home in the UK on Ten Meters and won first place for the UK Phone section.

In 1976 I met Diane. We moved to Hindhead Surrey in 78 where we lived for nearly fourteen years. Living at 800 feet ASL was great for VHF/UHF DXing. I seemed to have a pipeline for working 9H1BT in Malta on 2M during E's!

1989 came the Great Aurora. It was March 13th, Diane and myself were traveling back to Hindhead following a visit to relatives. It was dark, as we drove up the hill near to the Devils Punchbowl I could see in the rear view mirror that the sky to the North just above the horizon was a bright blue glow! By the time we arrived outside our house the sky overhead had turned red, so bright it was casting shadows on the ground!

When I turned on my radio it nearly jumped off the bench so strong were the Auroral signals. It was then that I had the contact with Don VO1QF via Auroral E's on 28MHz. It was this contact that started my interest in the possibility of making a 144MHz TransAtlantic QSO. That night Dave G4GLT in Leicester worked Florida on 6M AE's!

We now live in Devon very near to the coastal town of BUDE which is in North Cornwall. During Westerly storms the wind speed has reached 110MPH here, even my tower was bending!

My main interest is 144MHz TransAtlantic, one day it will happen! If this interests you visit my www.g4cqm.co.uk website.

Finally, my favorite film is Frequency Movie, it reminds me of how HAM RADIO can change your life forever, it did for me and still is!

73's Derek G4CQM

P.S. For many years now I have been self-employed as a professional Antenna Design Engineer. Back in 1994 I founded PowAbeam Antennas and was determined to establish a range of innovative State-of-the-Art yagi beam antennas. The designs were made possible by using YO7 PRO yagi design software from K6STI. These yagis feature 50-Ohms natural impedance for maximum efficiency, a Coaxial Dipole and unique Netlon clips to mount the elements. I have published on the Internet these designs for YOU to build for yourself.

Yagi kits at URL http://www.powabeamantennas.co.uk