Biography

Started off in 1963 Short Wave Listening in the Royal Navy on "Murphy B40" receivers in the Wireless Office of my first ship HMS Undaunted, down at Portland Naval Base, Dorset. That's when I heard my first radio amateurs on 80mtrs chatting about all sorts of things and got me interested in Amateur Radio. I continued using Royal Naval receivers aboard ship ( Racal RA17's etc ) until leaving the navy in 1972.
I attended night school at Farnborough Tech in Hampshire during 1978 and passed City & Guilds examination in 1979 then the Morse test at the Post Office HQ in London same year, I was issued with call - G4ISK.
Retired early moving to France in March 2004 did'nt take up radio again until 2012 first as F/G4ISK then issued F4VPL quite a few changes in the time off air..
I enjoy doing "Mills on the Air" every May from a restored windmill at St Jacut Les Pins photo on page may do the oldest windmill in the same village which has also just been restored in the 2016 weekend.
Have a VHF /P location 7 miles from home much higher at 410m with a good northerly clear take off for the UK, just using a 4 ele homebrew yagi FT480 and 160w Mirage amp.