Quote:
Originally Posted by Dick  Morse code isn’t part of the Canadian Rangers training. Good idea though. I have known SOS for a while, which I think most people know.
It begs the question though, how many people know Morse code?
Police, firefighters, armed forces? Any educated guesses out there? |
Sadly, I think that it is dwindling over time. Most hams will be able to do it, but now with no-code tech licenses, even that isn't for sure. Most military, police and fire/rescue do not require it in any way, although folks in all of those areas may have learned it for their own benefit.
However, if a rescuer can see or hear the familiar long-short routine, the odds are pretty good they will be able to FIND someone who knows it, or at least will take down the sequence of dots/dashes for someone to translate remotely. At the very least, it shows intellegent signalling rather than random noise or light, and that says to most people that you OBVIOUSLY need some sort of assistance otherwise you wouldn't need to signal in the first place.
Sadly, this statement is indicative of the state of morse code knowledge in this country and the world in general:
In the United States until 1991, a demonstration of the ability to send and receive Morse code at 5 words per minute (WPM) was required to receive an FCC amateur radio license. Demonstration of this ability is still required for the privilege to use the HF bands. Until 1999, proficiency at the 20 WPM level was required to receive the highest level of amateur license (Extra Class); effective April 15, 2000, the FCC reduced the Extra Class requirement to 5 WPM.[1] (http://www.arrl.org/announce/regulatory/wt98-143ro.pdf)
The World Radiocommunication Conference of 2003 (WRC-03) made optional the international Morse code requirement for amateur radio licensing. Although the requirement remains on the books in the US, Canada, and elsewhere, some countries are working to eliminate the requirement entirely.