Ham Radio Go Kit: What to Pack for Emergency Communications

A ham radio go kit is a bag, box or case that holds everything you need to get on the air away from home, quickly, without hunting for cables. It is the practical heart of emergency communications: when a storm or other disaster damages infrastructure, you want to be able to pick up one container and start working. The best kits are not the biggest or the most expensive. They are the ones that have been built with a clear purpose, tested on a regular basis, and packed so that nothing important is missing when the call comes.

This guide explains how to plan a go kit, what to put in it, how to size the power supply, which antennas to carry, how to organise documents and personal items, and how to test the kit so that it works the first time. Local plans and rules differ, so treat this as a framework and adapt it to your own emergency group.

Start With the Mission, Not the Gear

Before you buy a single cable, decide what your kit is for. A kit for a short local deployment at a shelter needs different things from one meant to support a regional net for several days. The ARRL describes the purpose of amateur radio in emergencies simply: hams serve their communities when storms or other disasters damage critical communication infrastructure, including cell towers and wired and wireless networks, and amateur radio can function completely independently of the internet and phone systems. Its page for the Amateur Radio Emergency Service adds that a station can be set up almost anywhere in minutes by raising a wire antenna in a tree or on a mast, and connecting it to a radio and a power source.

Ask yourself a few questions:

• Who will use the kit? You alone, or several operators with different experience levels?
• Which bands will you need? Local VHF and UHF FM for nearby communication, HF for longer distances, or both?
• How long must it run without mains power? A few hours, a day, or several days?
• How will you carry it? A backpack for a walk, a plastic case in a car boot, or a trolley for a longer move?

Your answers shape everything else. A compact VHF and UHF kit can be built into a small bag. An HF kit with a long wire antenna and a larger battery is closer to a portable field station.

Get Training and Know Your Local Plan

Equipment is only part of readiness. Emergency groups such as ARES in the United States and Canada are made up of licensed amateurs who have registered their qualifications and equipment with local leadership for communications duty in the public service. As the overview of ARES explains, such groups have responded to local and regional disasters since the 1930s. The ARRL says that training may be required or desired to participate fully, and that possessing emergency-powered equipment is desirable but not a requirement for membership.

If you live elsewhere, similar groups exist under different names. Find out which organisation serves your area, learn its net procedures, and ask which frequencies and message formats it uses. Those details belong in your kit’s documents, and you should never guess them during an event.

The Core Components

The table lists the main parts of a typical kit, what they are for and what to watch out for. Use it as a checklist and adapt it to your mission.

Radios: Keep It Simple and Familiar

The best radio for a go kit is the one you know how to use under stress. A dependable VHF and UHF FM handheld, with a spare battery and a charger, is the standard starting point, because most emergency traffic starts on local repeaters or simplex channels. A mobile FM radio with a few tens of watts, powered from a battery, covers a bigger area and works well with an external antenna. If your emergency plan includes HF, add an HF transceiver, preferably one that can run efficiently from a 12 volt supply.

Program your memories in advance with the frequencies your local group uses, and label them clearly. Print the memory list and keep it in the kit. If you are unsure about simplex and repeater operation, our guide to VHF and UHF simplex and repeater operating covers the fundamentals.

Power: Size It, Do Not Guess

Power is the part of a go kit that most often goes wrong. A radio that works perfectly on a bench can fall silent when a small battery is asked to supply a transmit current it cannot deliver. The sizing method is simple:

1. Find your radio’s current draw. Check the manual for current on receive and on transmit.
2. Estimate your transmit share. In most net operations the radio listens far more than it transmits.
3. Calculate the average current. Multiply each current by its share of time and add them.
4. Multiply by hours. The result is the capacity in amp-hours you need, and you should add a generous margin.

As an illustration only, suppose a radio draws 1 amp on receive and 20 amps on transmit, and transmits 10 percent of the time. The average draw is 0.1 times 20 plus 0.9 times 1, which is 2.9 amps. Over 12 hours that is about 35 amp-hours, before any margin. Use your own radio’s figures, not these.

Fit a fuse close to the battery, use cable of adequate thickness, and make connectors that cannot be reversed. Our guide to battery and power options for portable ham radio compares the common battery types and explains how to protect them. Include a way to recharge, such as a solar panel or a charger that can run from a vehicle, if your mission is long.

Antennas: Carry Simple, Proven Options

A good antenna improves a station far more than extra power does. A go kit should carry something simple for every band you plan to use:

• VHF and UHF. A magnetic-mount or telescoping antenna for a mobile radio, and a more efficient external antenna for handhelds. Our overview of 2 metre antenna options compares the common designs and is useful for building a portable one.
• HF for regional communication. A low horizontal wire is a classic choice for regional paths. Our guide to NVIS propagation and regional HF antennas explains why a low antenna can be the right answer for short-range HF.
• A lightweight mast. A fibreglass pole, with guy line and pegs, lifts the centre or the end of a wire in minutes.
• Spare coax and connectors. Carry more feedline than you think you need, and a few adapters between the connector types you use.

Before you rely on any antenna, set it up in a park or your garden and measure it. Learning how it behaves, and how long it takes to put up, is far better than discovering it on site.

Cables, Adapters and Noise Control

A tangle of mismatched cables is the most common reason a kit fails to work quickly. Label both ends of every cable, keep sets in small bags, and pack a few spare connectors and adapters. Poor interference control is the other frequent problem: in a small space, radios, chargers and laptops can all create noise in each other. Ferrite chokes on power and signal cables help considerably, as explained in our guide to common mode chokes. Put a few spares in the kit.

Documents, Logs and Lists

When screens fail, paper does not. Include in your kit:

• A frequency and channel list for your emergency group, plus the local band plan.
• Contact lists with names, call signs and phone numbers of your net control and served agencies.
• Blank logs and message forms in the format your group uses, with pencils, because pens fail in the cold and in the wet.
• A radio operating card with the basic settings and procedures for each radio, so that a newcomer can operate it.
• Maps of your area, with grid squares or coordinates marked if your plan uses them.

Keep documents in a waterproof pouch, and keep a digital copy on a device as a backup, never as the only copy.

Personal Readiness and Comfort

The ARRL’s guidance for emergency volunteers makes an important point that gear lists often miss: you need to be equipped with sustaining skills. If you arrive at a location with no food and poor sleeping conditions, you must still be able to do the job. Pack water, food, spare clothing, a torch or headlamp with spare batteries, basic first-aid supplies and any medication you need. The ARRL also stresses preparing your family for your absence, because a volunteer’s family has to cope while the volunteer is away, and recognising that fatigue and exhaustion are common after deployments.

Test, Practise and Maintain

A kit that has never been used is a kit that will probably fail. A simple routine keeps it ready:

1. Test everything every few months. Charge the batteries, power up the radios, check the connectors and make a test contact.
2. Rotate perishable items. Replace food, water and any items with expiry dates on a calendar.
3. Practise a full deployment. Set up the whole station in a park, make contacts, then pack it away. Time yourself and fix whatever slowed you down.
4. Join a drill. Take part in your group’s exercises and nets, and use events such as Field Day as practice. Our guide to Field Day planning and power shows how the same skills transfer to a 24-hour exercise.
5. Update the paperwork. Frequencies and contact details change, and an out-of-date list is worse than none.

Common Go Kit Mistakes

• Buying gear before defining the mission. A kit full of equipment that does not match your local plan wastes money and weight.
• Relying on a single point of failure. One battery, one antenna or one cable that fails can end the deployment. Pack a spare of whatever is critical.
• Packing everything but the instructions. If someone else has to operate the kit, a short written guide to set-up and operation is as important as the radio.
• Forgetting to charge and rotate batteries. A kit that is stored for a year without attention is probably flat. Put charging on the calendar.
• Making the kit too heavy. If you cannot carry it comfortably to where it is needed, you will leave parts behind. Build a small core kit and a larger extension.
• Never practising with other people. Radio is a team activity. Practise with your net, use the same procedures and learn from the exercise.

The Bottom Line

A ham radio go kit works when it is built around a clear mission, powered with a battery you have actually sized, equipped with simple antennas you have actually tried, and supported by paper documents and personal supplies. Start with a handheld, a spare battery and a good antenna, add HF and a bigger battery when your plan needs them, and keep the kit organised, labelled and tested. Join your local emergency group for training and practice, because the best equipment is useless without people who know how to use it.

Frequently Asked Questions

What should be in a basic ham radio go kit?

A VHF and UHF radio with spare batteries, an efficient antenna, power and charging, cables and adapters, paper logs and frequency lists, basic tools and personal items such as water, food and a light.

How do I size the battery for my go kit?

Find your radio’s receive and transmit current, estimate how much of the time it transmits, calculate the average current, and multiply by the hours you need. Add a margin, and protect the circuit with a fuse.

Do I need an HF radio for emergency communications?

Not always. Many local emergency plans rely on VHF and UHF, but HF is valuable for regional or long-distance links when local networks are down. Your local group’s plan should guide the decision.

Should I join an emergency communications group?

It is strongly recommended. Groups such as ARES provide training, procedures and organised exercises, and they know which frequencies and formats the served agencies use. Only licensed amateurs can join.

How often should I test the kit?

Every few months at least. Charge batteries, check connectors, make a test contact and rehearse a full set-up, and update your lists whenever frequencies or contacts change.

Do I need special equipment to join ARES?

No. The ARRL says emergency-powered equipment is desirable but is not a requirement for membership. Every licensed amateur is eligible to apply, and training may be required or desired.