The SHARES network presently consists of 1040 HF radio stations, located in all 50 states, and at 34 overseas locations.
Guidance and direction for the SHARES program is the responsibility of the NCS SHARES HF Interoperability Working Group. As a standing committee under the NCS Council of Representatives (COR), the Working Group also serves as a forum for addressing regulatory, procedural , and technical issues affecting Federal HF radio interoperability. Administrative support for the SHARES program is provided by the Chief, Operations Division (N3), NCS. Further information on the SHARES program may be obtained from the Chief, Operations Division, National Communications System, 701 South Court House Road, Arlington, VA, 22204-2198, or by calling the SHARES Project Officer at (703) 607-4900, or electronic mail at [email protected] . The SHARES home page address is http://www.dhs.gov/shares.
Call signs in the SHARES network are the same as used by the appropriate agency, such as Civil Air Patrol; Department of Justice; NASA; US Army; Navy; Coast Guard; and the Department of Agriculture (USDA).
A SHARES message consists of information that must be communicated to a Federal entity and is of critical importance to the Federal government, the entity's mission, and/or involves the preservation of life and the protection of property.
The National Communications System (NCS) will have its 34th birthday on August 21 of this year. During its 30th anniversary in 1993 SHARES HF radion station KGD-34, located at the National Coordinating Center for Telecommunications (NCC) Arlington, Virginia, conducted a week-long open house of the SHARES HF radio program. Periodic SHARES exercises are held each year to familiarize personnel with SHARES message formats and procedures. SHARES manuals supply the specific message form format to be followed when using SHARES.
Nationwide SHARES exercises are conducted periodically to assess SHARES capability, and to provide station personnel training on SHARES message formatting and radio operating procedures. Over 900 station operators participated in the three two-day SHARES exercises conducted during 1996
To pass a SHARES message (by authorized agencies):
- Dial a SHARES frequency,
- Indicate you have a SHARES message to pass,
- Who the message is to, their address and telephone number,
- Pass the traffic (keep it brief).