Since June 2026 I’ve been running an AllStarLink Gateway on the 2m band with the callsign of MB7IBW. The gateway has been on 24/7 for this period of time but sadly, it gets no use whatsoever apart from the occasional use by Alan, G1SQB who lives locally (who I chat with daily) or if I use the node to talk to others in the Matrix HAM Radio community located elsewhere in the world.
The VHF/UHF bands in this part of Suffolk are hardly used at all and I was hoping that bringing up a gateway that was connected to the world would bring back some interest locally but, sadly not.
With it using 23kw of electricity per month and the extortionate energy costs in the UK at the moment, I’ve decided it’s not worth the effort and money to keep it on air and so I’ve decided to close down the service permanently.
I remember the days back when I was a G1 how active both the 2m and 70cm bands were and the huge enjoyment I used to get from chatting with people on the two bands on a daily basis, especially when out mobile.
Today both the 2m and 70cm bands are full of nothing but RF Tumbleweed, it’s such a shame as it’s a huge amount of bandwidth that isn’t being used, I’m amazed we still have the allocations.
Anyway, looking forward I will use the equipment for other projects in the very near future so, it won’t go to waste.
More soon …