Date: March 2025
Amount: $2,420

The 39th Colombo Scout Group at S. Thomas’ Preparatory School operates amateur radio station 4S6STP to engage Scouts and students in communication and technology. The group plans to acquire equipment, set up antennas, and conduct DXing sessions. They will host biweekly calls with other schools and organize Fox Hunts in partnership with the Radio Society of Sri Lanka. They also aim to integrate amateur radio into the Scout syllabus to encourage greater youth involvement.

Update

The project commenced with the successful acquisition of ARDC grant funding, initially awarded and later supplemented with additional support. Following this, essential amateur radio equipment—including an all-mode base transceiver covering HF, VHF, and UHF, as well as portable VHF/UHF handheld radios for field use and training, a range of antennas for HF and VHF/UHF communication, an APRS LoRa kit, power supply units, SWR measurement tools, and related accessories—was procured, despite logistical challenges such as high shipping costs, import duties, and clearance delays.

Following procurement, the equipment was assembled, and the 4S6STP amateur radio station was established and brought into operation at the premises of S. Thomas’ Preparatory School as a Scout-led initiative under the 39th Colombo Scout Group. Due to the school being surrounded by high-rise structures, antenna placement and signal propagation posed significant challenges, limiting access to repeaters and affecting HF performance. As a result, initial operations primarily relied on VHF/UHF communication, with HF operations remaining limited and requiring further optimization through improved antenna solutions. Despite these constraints, the station was successfully made operational and served as a functional platform for training Scouts in amateur radio communication, facilitating both local and inter-station contacts during JOTA–JOTI activities.

The JOTA–JOTI 2025 activities were conducted at the school premises, where the 4S6STP amateur radio station served as the central hub for operations. Scouts from multiple troops within the Colombo District – including the 39th Colombo Scout Troop (S. Thomas’ Preparatory School), 5th Colombo Scout Troop (St. Benedict’s College), 14th Colombo Scout Troop (Wesley College), 42nd Colombo Scout Troop (Royal College), and the 78th Colombo Zulu Open Scout Troop (Girl Scouts)—were invited to participate in the event, which included training sessions, practical radio operation, and interactive communication activities.

The event encompassed introductory training in amateur radio, supervised practical operation, real-time communication with other Scout and amateur radio stations, and interactive engagements such as the exchange of greetings and Scout songs. In addition, demonstrations of modern radio technologies, including LoRa APRS, and SSTV, were conducted to broaden participants’ exposure. The event also saw the participation of district-level Scout leadership, including the District Commissioner, Assistant District Commissioner (International), and the District JOTA–JOTI Coordinator, providing institutional recognition to the initiative. Overall, the event successfully facilitated practical learning, collaboration, and engagement, while demonstrating the operational capability of the 4S6STP station and promoting amateur radio within the Scouting community.

The initiative led to increased engagement beyond the student level, with two adult members enrolling in the Radio Society of Sri Lanka and additional Scouts expressing interest in joining as student members. At an institutional level, the project gained recognition from district-level Scout leadership, with the District Commissioner proposing the inclusion of amateur radio into the Scout training syllabus. The success of the event also inspired interest among other Scout groups, including plans by one troop to establish its own amateur radio station.