3XY1D

Guinea - October/November 2011

Operation

This was our second DXpedition to Guinea. The first one took place in Oct/Nov 2002 as 3XY7C with 52480 QSOs in the log. This time we were using the call sign 3XY1D and made 53933 QSOs between Oct 18, 2011 and Nov 1, 2011. We were active with several stations on 160m through 6m on CW, SSB. One station was dedicated to RTTY, PSK31 and SSTV. Please check our News Page.

  

Our equipment consisted of 5 transceivers (4 x K2, 1 x IC7000), 4 x kW linears , 2 x 18m Lowband Vertical, a 2 ele vertical for 40m, a 2 ele vertical for 30m, a R7 vertical R7 40/30/20/17/15/12/10, 2 Spiderbeams for 20/17/15/12/10, a 5 ele Yagi for 6m and some Beverage antennas.

Team

Our experienced crew included:

Pilot for this DXpedition was Bernd, DF3CB

Sponsors

We would like to express our sincere thanks to all our sponsors for this DXpedition:

www.funkamateur.de www.QSL-Shop.com
Bert - DJ2BC Sid - DM2AYO
Spiderbeam Nippon DX Association (NDXA)
German DX Foundation Clipperton DX Club
Chiltern DX Club: The UK DX Foundation European DX Foundation
The DXLover Foundation Danish
Rudi - DM2XO
ex. DL7VFR
Passau DX Club
AGCW-DL

 

Individual sponsors

Jan - DL7UFN   Marco - PE2MC
Tom - DJ6TF   Jamie - W2QO
Stan - KH6CG   Tony - KT0NY
Bo - OZ8ABE   Clay - K7HC
Andre - V51B   Marco - PE2MC
Igor - RA9CMO   Kan - JA1BK
Franz - DJ9ZB   Owen - K3CB
Zeljko - VK6VY   Pol - ON8BV
Mark - K0ABC   Masaiku - JA6CNH
Philip  - W8UV   Jens - DL2AJB
David  - N8OC   Franklin - K8FB
Olaf  - DK2LO   Bjorn - LA5YJ
Gunter  - DL2RUG   Sake - PA0SKP
Rick  - K8ZH

About Guinea

 
Country name: Republic of Guinea
National capital: Conakry
Location: Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone
Area: total: 245,857 sq km
land: 245,717 sq km
water: 140 sq km
Land boundaries: total: 3,399 km
border countries: Cote d'Ivoire 610 km, Guinea-Bissau 386 km, Liberia 563 km, Mali 858 km, Senegal 330 km, Sierra Leone 652 km
Coastline: 320 km
Climate: generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds
Terrain: generally flat coastal plain, hilly to mountainous interior
Natural resources: bauxite, iron ore, diamonds, gold, uranium, hydropower, fish, salt
Population: 10,601,009 (July 2011 est.)
Ethnic groups: Peuhl 40%, Malinke 30%, Soussou 20%, smaller ethnic groups 10%
Religions: Muslim 85%, Christian 8%, indigenous beliefs 7%
Languages: French (official)
note: each ethnic group has its own language
Independence: 2 October 1958 (from France)
Economy: Guinea is a poor country that possesses major mineral, hydropower, and agricultural resources. The country has almost half of the world's bauxite reserves and significant iron ore, gold, and diamond reserves. However, Guinea has been unable to profit from this potential, as rampant corruption, dilapidated electricity and other degraded infrastructure, and political uncertainty have drained investor confidence. In the time since a 2008 coup following the death of long-term President Lansana CONTE, international donors, including the G-8, the IMF, and the World Bank, have significantly curtailed their development programs. Throughout 2009, policies of the ruling military junta severely weakened the economy. The junta leaders spent and printed money at an accelerated rate, driving inflation and debt to perilously high levels. In early 2010, the junta collapsed and was replaced by a Transition Government, which ceded power in December 2010 to the country's first-ever democratically elected president, Alpha CONDE. International assistance and investment are expected to return to Guinea, but the levels will depend upon the ability of the new government to combat corruption and reform its banking system. IMF and World Bank programs will be especially critical as Guinea attempts to gain debt relief. Since the 2009 global economic downturn, the price and value of bauxite and alumina exports has steadily risen. Export levels will likely continue to grow as investor confidence returns. International investors have expressed keen interest in Guinea's vast iron ore reserves, which could further propel the country's growth
Reference: CIA - The World Factbook -- Guinea