Turkish airline professional turns amateur radio buff

By Ahmet Gencturk

ANKARA (AA) – A Turkish airline professional from Istanbul rediscovered his old interest and has become an amateur radio buff amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Working over 15 years in the airline industry as an aircrew member, aircrew chief and aircrew trainer, Levent Tamay was finally able to allocate time to his old interest in amateur radio when the airline industry was hit hard by the pandemic from March 2020 onwards.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Tamay shared how an unpleasant surprise -- his temporary suspension from his job with reduced salary because of the pandemic -- introduced him to the unfamiliar yet exciting world of amateur radio.

“After a few weeks of confusion, frustration and indecision, I determined that keeping myself busy through a hobby would be the best way to preserve my sanity. I then remembered my long-lasting interest in amateur radio,” he said.

“Being part of a community spread all around the world and communicating with them in a not-so-common and harder way makes me feel somewhat special,” he added.

He noted that personal encounters played a role in his interest in amateur radio.

“In 1999, I participated in search and rescue efforts in the aftermath of the earthquake in northwestern Duzce province as a volunteer. There I witnessed how a handful of volunteer amateur radio operators made much-needed communication possible when phone lines collapsed.”

He underscored that the significance of the amateur radio operators was appreciated by Turkish state institutions which learned lessons from the earthquake in 1999 and eventually tasked wireless radio operators in search and rescue teams of the Disaster and Emergency Management Authority (AFAD).

Tamay also underlined that all contemporary technologies such as mobile phones, the internet and future technologies like spacecraft communication and satellite broadcasting share the same base technology as radio, which is electromagnetic waves.

“With this background, encouraging people in Turkey, especially the young generation, to take an interest in amateur radio would eventually lead to curiosity for science and hence an increased interest in engineering and natural sciences," he added.