Nitty-gritty on walkie-talkies

This item appears on page 58 of the July 2009 issue.

A reader recommended taking along “lightweight walkie-talkies” for communcation while traveling abroad (May ’09, pg. 20). This might be a good idea, but please do your research before using them outside of the United States.

In other countries, the bandplan (that is, the allocation of use of various radio frequencies) may be radically different than in the US, where the radios have been designed to be used. Even if the allocated usage of the band in the country you are visiting is the same as in the US, the radios you use may transmit a level of power that is illegal there.

The BellSouth 2276GY radios mentioned, for example, are designed to operate on the frequencies used in the US for the Family Radio Service (FRS), the 462.5625-467.7125 MHz band. In the UK, this frequency band is used by the fire department, and there have been incidences of tourists inadvertently interfering with fire operations by using FRS radios brought from the US.

In any case, these radios are not technically authorized for use outside the US under any circumstances. According to the FCC, “You may operate your FRS unit within the territorial limits of the 50 United States, the District of Columbia and the Caribbean and Pacific Insular areas (“US”). You may also operate your FRS unit on or over any other area of the world except within the territorial limits of areas where radio communications are regulated by another agency of the US or within the territorial limits of any foreign government.” (Source)

In fact, certain channels on General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) radios (which require a license to operate even in the US, depending on the usage) cannot be used in some areas of Washington state because the transmissions may bleed over the border and violate the Canadian bandplan. Some FRS radios are also GMRS radios and are therefore affected by this limitation as well.

A further issue is that in many countries, especially in Africa and Asia, using 2-way radios, even legally (just as with GPS receivers), can attract very unpleasant attention from the authorities, as it is viewed as a suspicious activity.

So before tossing a pair of walkie-talkies in the luggage, do a little research to ensure that their use is allowed in the countries you plan to visit and that the frequencies your radios operate on (which will be detailed in the user manual or even on the box) will fit appropriately into the bandplan implemented there.

The Wikipedia article on FRS might be a good place to start.

JAIME ONDRUSEK, N7MLT

Marietta, OH