FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE September 29, 2026
Contact: Max Freedman, N4ML This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
The Pacific Islands DXpedition Group (PIDXG), in partnership with Youth on the Air (YOTA) announces that our young operator team has now grown to ten operators from six countries and five continents. These young amateurs bring a remarkable combination of contesting experience, technical expertise, engineering skills, and—most importantly—a passion for DX.
Meet the Newest Members of the VK9XY Team
Carter Bailey, KN4DLY, is twenty-three and comes to VK9XY from Northeast Georgia. Licensed at just 13 years old, Carter has remained active in his local amateur radio community, serving on repeater committees and helping maintain and support radio infrastructure.
His interests span repeater systems, digital modes, microwave RF, and tower and antenna work—skills that should prove particularly useful during VK9XY.
Outside amateur radio, Carter works in the A/V industry as a systems integrator and audio engineer. He also holds an FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate and has experience with a variety of UAV platforms.
Carter is looking forward to putting his skills to work on the island and becoming part of the VK9XY team. For Carter, VK9XY will also be a first: his first opportunity to operate amateur radio outside the United States.
Violetta Latham, KN2P, has been licensed since 2014 and already has significant DX and contesting experience.
Violetta joined the E51MWA DXpedition team in 2025 and is currently involved in planning the VP0SG DXpedition to South Georgia Island in 2027. Her contesting experience includes operations from some of the world's premier contest stations, including K3LR, W3LPL, HQ9X, PJ2T, and J62K.
She serves as a director on the board of the Northern California DX Foundation (NCDXF) and as the ARRL Section Youth Coordinator for Colorado.
And radio is not Violetta's only passion. She is a commercial pilot and flight instructor in Colorado Springs and is completing a degree in Aviation Management.
Violetta brings a wealth of operating and expedition experience to VK9XY—and we are excited to have her on the team.
Otto Pattemore, VK4OTZ, is 18 years old and was first licensed in 2022 at the age of fourteen.
Otto's path into amateur radio began with model rocketry and telemetry systems. Once he discovered amateur radio, however, it quickly became his main hobby. He has already built considerable contesting experience, operating both as a single operator and as part of teams with other young Australian amateurs.
His two primary interests are contesting and DXing and designing radios and antennas. He is also studying electronic engineering, with plans to specialize in RF and communications systems.
For Otto, VK9XY will be a major milestone.
It will be his first DXpedition—and hopefully the first of many.
With the addition of these operators, the ten-member young operator team is now complete.
The young operators will be based at Mango Tree Lodge, where they will operate the main VK9XY station.
With the team growing to ten, veteran advisors Glenn Johnson, W0GJ, and Gregg Marco, W6IZT, will operate from Ruhma Tinngi, approximately five hundred yards to the west.
This arrangement will give the young operators room to run the operation while keeping experienced advisors close at hand when needed.
The Off-Island Team Is Growing Too
The VK9XY operation does not stop at the shores of Christmas Island.
Our off-island team has now grown to thirty-five operators from around the world, with plans to support as many as forty young operators. Demand has been so strong that we may need to expand that number.
These operators will provide an important second component of VK9XY, giving young amateurs around the world the opportunity to participate in the expedition while operating alongside the team on Christmas Island.
Contact Kees W0AAE This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or Steve Ki4KWR This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. if you are a young op and interested in joining our off-island team.
The goal is simple: to put as many young operators as possible on the air with VK9XY.
How You Can Support Us
Fundraising is under way, with the goal of covering the costs for our young operators. With continued support we will reach this goal.
Donations can be made by PayPal to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by check payable to:
PACIFIC ISLANDS DXPEDITION GROUP
69 Saddleview Lane
Morganton, GA 30560
For more details, visit our website at vk9xy2026.com.
Thank you in advance for your support, your next contact might just be with a young operator running the pile-up, not just working it, for the very first time!