NCO Requirements

Volunteering as a Net Control Operator (NCO) for SKYWARN is a great way to help your National Weather Service Forecast Office accomplish their mission to protect life and property right in your community. Little or no emergency communications experience is required! We provide all the training, and if you're not yet a licensed ham, we can help with that, too.

SKYWARN Net Control Operators run the SKYWARN nets in each SKYWARN Area. They receive orders to activate from their Area Manager, the Amateur Radio Coordinator, or directly from the National Weather Service.

Each Net Control Operator is responsible for the orderly flow of information to and from the National Weather Service. This includes collection of reports from Spotters in the field, dissemination of current watches and warnings from the National Weather Service, and completing requests for reports from specific areas as needed by NWS staff.

Minimum Requirements

To be considered for a Net Control Operator position, the following minimum criteria must be met:

• Technician Class or higher amateur radio license
• Current Basic SKYWARN training (within last 3 years and from NWS Wakefield, Newport/Morehead City, Raleigh, Blacksburg, Sterling, or Mt. Holly)
• Excellent organization and communication skills
• 2-meter transceiver capable of accessing all Primary repeaters and at least one Backup repeater in the area
• Cell phone or pager for notification purposes
• Working NOAA Weather Radio receiver (SAME capability suggested)
• Computer with Internet access (high speed DSL, cable, or wireless Internet preferred) and short-term backup power (laptop, uninterruptable power supply/UPS, or generator)
• Reasonable comfort level with the basic operation of a personal computer (working with e-mail, typing information into a web form, etc).

In addition to the list above, the ability to meet the following criteria are preferred (but not required):

• General Class or higher amateur radio license
• Prior experience as Net Control in an emergency communications environment (drills are acceptable)
• HF transceiver and antenna capable of operating on 80, 40, and 20 meters
• Ability to effectively act as Net Control from multiple locations (for example, both home and work)
• Ability to maintain required communication on emergency power for at least three hours

If you meet these requirements and are interested in training, look here for more information on the training process.