Against the backdrop of the 2012 Dayton Hamvention® -- the largest gathering of radio amateurs in the US -- ICOM America announced a sponsorship agreement with the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) for the organization’s 2013 National Scout Jamboree. As the BSA’s official Amateur Radio transceiver supplier for the jamboree, ICOM will provide equipment and technical support for the K2BSA radio operation, the Radio merit badge and Jamboree on the Air.

ICOM has supported K2BSA -- the Boy Scouts of America’s Jamboree Amateur Radio operation -- since 1981. Over those eight Jamborees, more than 30,000 Scouts have been able to experience Amateur Radio as a potential lifetime hobby or as an entry to a vocation in technology and communication. For the 2013 Jamboree, ICOM will provide all Amateur Radio transceivers, associated power supplies, microphones and speakers. They will also be installing VHF and UHF repeaters that will remain in place year-round to support Summit activities and the local community.

In addition to supporting the National Jamboree, ICOM and the BSA will select local councils to receive a loan of a complete Amateur Radio station for use in merit badge advancement activities and to introduce Scouts to the fun and technology of Amateur Radio. Up to 10 stations will be available for this program beginning in 2012. Since its introduction, more than 150,000 Scouts have earned the Radio merit badge, which was introduced as the Wireless merit badge in 1918.

The BSA, by virtue of its active membership and its outdoor program, represents a significant source of potential new radio operators looking to use Amateur Radio for emergency communications while in the field, as well as for education, experimentation and friendship. Together with ICOM, the BSA will be able to offer a first‐class experience to Jamboree participants and to the local councils selected for the station loan program.

ICOM is also a supporter of Jamboree on the Air (JOTA) -- the largest Scouting event in the world -- with nearly 750,000 Scouts participating annually. In 2011, more than 6000 Amateur Radio stations from 150 countries participated in the event, which takes place the third weekend of October each year.