XE1L, G3VA, Silent Keys

Luis Chartarifsky, XE1L (SK)
(K0NEB photo)

A sad ending to the TX5A DXpedition to Clipperton Island. After returning to San Diego, noted DXer and team member Luis Chartarifsky, XE1L, suffered a fatal heart attack. This was Luis's tenth major DXpedition, in addition to smaller operations from over a dozen countries. The news was first reported on the DX Coffee Facebook page.

Pat Hawker, G3VA (SK)
(Photo courtesy RSGB)

The ARRL reports that longtime RadCom columnist and Radio Society of Great Britain Life Vice President Pat Hawker, G3VA, became a Silent Key in February at age 90. Hawker wrote the bi-monthly "Technical Topics" column in RadCom for 50 years before stepping down in 2008. Many of his columns have been collected in Technical Topics books offered by RSGB. A ham since 1938, his radio skills were put to good use in World War II, during which he served in military intelligence for both the UK and the Netherlands.