This is a UK Special Event call-sign for the SULA lightship during the International Lighthouse & Lightship Weekend

Light Vessel SULA: Llanthony Quay, Llanthony Road, Gloucester Docks, GL2 5HH, (IO81UU).

The Humber Conservancy Board commissioned LV14, Admiralty Light Number 2422, which was launched on the 2^nd of June 1959. Stationed as the Spurn Lightship at the mouth of the River Humber. She suffered several collisions with fishing boats during her 26 year service and was decommissioned on the 11^th of December 1985.

Since then, she has been a Yacht Club Clubhouse in Guernsey and tourist attractions in several places like Conway and Milford Haven in Wales.

Between January 2002 and June 2007 saw the ship laid up in Southern Ireland. The current owners bought her, moved her to Sharpness Docks where she underwent a major refurbishment and was adapted for her current business role. She was renamed SULA and then moved to her current location in Gloucester Docks. The present incarnation is explained on her owners web site: http://www.lightshiptherapies.net/news.html.

In 2011, the station first joined the "International Lighthouse & Lightship Weekend" event with help of the Cheltenham Radio club CARA. The station had a 6m/2m/70cms colinear mounted above the Light Tower roof and an HF Doublet suspended from the cross trees on the two masts.We were equipped for SSB/FM/D-Star and the doublet allowed contacts on 80m, 40m, 30m, 20m, 17m, 15m, and 10m.

Thank you to Dave G4OYX and Tony G8JAY for their hardware contributions and several others who helped to install the equipment on board including Giles G0NXA, Doug G4IGN and Graham G4FUJ (I hope I didn't forget anybody)

We made 335 contacts and had a wonderful weekend. It could only have been improved by better conditions. There is a clip showning the Lightship and our activities on the top of this page. We were the United Kingdoms most central participants and on board a lightship!

Jan (owner of the lightship) has passed his exams and is now on the air as M6ULA and has taken over admin for GB5ULA page. Big thanks goes to Giles G0NXA for all his help and support!!!!

We have registered the SULA lightship for this year's (2012) event under ILLW number UK0132 and we will post details on this page over time. But I am sure it's going to be another cracking weekend with the CARA gang! Having said that, other local stations are more then welcome to share the fun when we are on the air of course. The more the better: it's a great way of meeting people and share the hobby with visitors to the lightship!

Stay tuned!!

Jan 2E0UPA  (ex-M6ULA)