Indiana Amateur Radio
Emergency Service

ARES District 1
Serving Lake, Porter, LaPorte, Jasper, and Newton Counties. 

• Availability of modern, reliable, interoperable, accurate, resilient and timely contingency, emergency, and supplemental (auxiliary) communications technologies, which go beyond voice-only capability, and the reasonably priced equipment necessary to utilize it.

 

Voice communications continues to have its place in today’s highly technical world, but served agencies rely upon and need written and visual forms of communications for many reasons, including operational, legal and after-action analysis, reports, improvement planning, requests for federal reimbursement, etc.

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ARES D1’s capability to use digital technology (especially encoded email and attachments over radio, the transmission and reception of still and video imagery), resource position tracking and telemetry, real-time weather observations, encryption* (*Restrictions apply, see below) and more can be accomplished at a far lower cost, with less equipment, in less time and with much less infrastructure during times of contingency, emergency or disaster than served agencies can accomplish unless they duplicate our capabilities on their own. 

 

Ham radio systems are geographically dispersed and can be fixed, mobile or portable; use the Earth’s ionosphere as their “transmission media and transport layer;” use a variety of modes and digital algorithms, most of which are extremely difficult to intercept and properly decode; and are capable of operating on a wide array of randomly selected radio frequencies, which when combined, make successful cyber-hacking virtually impossible. 

 

ARES D1’s interoperability resources can provide National Security Agency (NSA) provided and approved encryption* capability to send and receive served agencies’ most sensitive information during the very rare times that use of Ham radio resources are not appropriate.

*Encryption is not permitted on Ham radio frequencies. ARES D1’s interoperability resources allow access to non-Ham emergency communications systems where higher speed, encrypted messaging is possible, when deemed necessary under certain conditions or in certain situations.

 

• Expertise and ingenuity of Ham Radio Operators and other Emergency Communicators affiliated with ARES D1 who ensure communications systems are established and messages get through in a reliable, accurate and timely manner, even under the worst emergency, disaster or atmospheric conditions.

 

Many Hams bring a variety of other skills beyond communications and technology. For example, medical, administrative, leadership and trade skills, plus others.

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• The ability of ARES D1 members to establish Ad Hoc, flexible, interoperable and resilient short, medium and long-distance communications networks which are able to expand and contract to meet the needs of the served agencies and situation.

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• Dedicated, experienced ARES D1 members and other Emergency Communicators affiliated with ARES D1 who have a dedication to voluntary public service to help their fellow man and woman, and their communities.  

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• Experienced and proven leadership throughout ARES D1, with support, expertise and resources available from the Indiana ARRL Section, ARRL Headquarters and other organizations to make ARES D1 a success and the “go to” source for modern, reliable, interoperable, accurate, resilient and timely contingency, emergency, and supplemental (auxiliary) communications; real-time severe weather observation data; resource position tracking and telemetry, ground-truth intelligence (“eyes and ears”), and “force multipliers,” and where an existing, viable SKYWARN organization does not otherwise exist, real-time severe weather observation data upon which served agencies can rely.