From 
As many of you know, it has been my dream and honor to join the team planning to activate Bouvet Island (3Y0K) in February 2026. To make this possible, I approached K3JO, LU9ESD, RN5M and JT1CO to join me and personally contributed the sum $120,000, ktorá pokrývala ich účasť aj moju vlastnú.
In addition, we are together with K3JO, LU9ESD and RN5M made all vertical type antennas yagi , masts and support equipment, ktoré sa mali použiť na 3Y0K — which amounted to additional personal expenses of approx $100,000. Trvalo nám viac ako tri mesiace tvrdej práce, kým sme všetko dokončili.
I also secured main sponsorship and equipment supplies:
- From Icom America: dvanásť transceiverov IC-7610 a štyri IC-7300.
- From ACOM: dvanásť zosilňovačov.
I personally provided a complete set of antennas for both camps, vrátane štrnástich yagi antén, dvoch vertikálov pre 160 m, dvoch štvorcových sústav (4-square) pre 80 m a dvoch pre 40 m, vertikálov pre 30 m, tribanderov, duálbanderov, filtrov pre všetky pásma, dupexerov, triplexerov a ďalšieho vybavenia — ako aj takmer 30 waterproof transport cases, všetko hradené z mojich vlastných prostriedkov.
All this equipment has been sent to Norway to be loaded into a container which is now on its way to Bouvet. I took full responsibility for the technical success of the expedition — and I fulfilled this responsibility 100%.
Over the past months I have repeatedly asked Ken (LA7GIA) to share with the team about financial report — including a cash-flow statement and a profit and loss statement for the 3Y0K expedition. My goal was just to provide transparency pre všetkých členov tímu a zorganizovať spoločné stretnutie, kde by sme prebrali posledné prípravy a podľa potreby koordinovali finančnú alebo logistickú podporu.
Instead of responding to these reasonable requests and calling a team meeting, Ken demanded an additional $90,000 from me to cover the alleged budget deficit. Later he also requested additional contributions of $7,000 each from each operator – ie from K1LZ, LU9ESD, K3JO and RN5M. I agreed with this second request because it stated that the same request would be addressed to all team members.
These questions must have made management nervous — but I asked them because I had a feeling they would they really only care about my name, contacts and money. Žiaľ, ukázalo sa, že som sa nemýlil.
Furthermore, I repeatedly asked LA7GIA to published the names of private donors a the terms of their contributions at 3Y0K — which are said to be level $800,000.
It is not disturbing to go to such a remote and dangerous island with people, whose names, identity and intentions we do not know at all? Nemáme právo vedieť, kto sú, akú úlohu budú mať a ako poskytnú tých sľúbených $800,000?
Don't forget that similar situation it also happened during another expedition a few years ago, which had to be terminated prematurely due to serious internal conflicts between the radio amateur team and the external group.
I also asked him to be on the team registered doctor — as is customary with any large expedition of this magnitude. The presence of a medical professional should be an absolute priority. Nesmie sa zabudnúť, že pri minulých akciách už došlo k vážnym úrazom — ja sám som takmer prišiel o život po páde zo stožiara, ktorý bol nesprávne zabezpečený neskúsenou osobou.
Finally, I also asked for confirmation regarding the second, higher location of the camp, ktorá mala pôvodne zabezpečiť lepšiu propagáciu smerom do Severnej Ameriky.
I later learned that this second location is no longer planned, hoci na oficiálnej webovej stránke 3Y0K stále figuruje. V skutočnosti sú však obe lokality z hľadiska topografie aj šírenia signálu takmer totožné — a , žiaľ, both are among the most unsuitable places on the island.
Takzvaný „North American camp“ sa zrejme ukázal len ako marketing story, ktorý mal prilákať sponzorov zo Severnej Ameriky. Bez tejto legendy by pravdepodobne len málokto dôveroval rovnakému vedeniu, ktoré už raz zlyhalo počas svojej predchádzajúcej expedície na Bouvet.
That's why I decided to get involved, pretože – nech sa to vedeniu páči alebo nie – our team specializes in such projects. Budujeme niektoré z najúspešnejších rádiových staníc na svete. Nie sme lepší ako ostatní, len máme experience and proven results.
If anyone felt offended by this, I am truly sorry. But the facts speak for themselves: Roman (RN5M) has been dealing with this professionally for more than 25 years and Manu (LU9ESD) he has been working with him for the last four. Velimir (K3JO), an electronic engineer, is a pioneer of radio station automation and the only person I know capable of solving any technical problem in this area.
On past expeditions he repaired transceivers, amplifiers and various electronic equipment, allowing us to continue operating without interruption. But there is no need to say much about them - the whole world knows these names a respects them for what they have done and are still doing for radio amateurs.
In all the above cases I have only met with resistance and silence. Ken odmietol poskytnúť požadované informácie, no naďalej ma pushed to pay another $90,000.
This amount arose from informal conversation, ktorú sme mali minulý rok vo Friedrichshafene, kde som poznamenal, že ak by na konci chýbali financie, maybe I could help. Keďže sa vedeniu nepodarilo získať dostatočné financie – pravdepodobne pre damaged reputation and lack of trust in the community – Ken this amount later included in the contract as my obligation and added to it special clause.
It was a bold and thoughtful move — and in hindsight, it seems that was the intention from the very beginning. Mojou najväčšou chybou bolo, že som túto zmluvu podpísal bez dôkladného prečítania, lebo som veril, že there is no cheating between team members.
Neither me nor anyone on my team he never received an invitation or notification about participating in workshops or helping to load a container in Norway — which clearly shows that our presence was not welcome.
I was this week officially informed, že I am no longer a member of the 3Y0K expedition, pretože som odmietol poskytnúť dodatočných 90 000 USD a preto, že som „kládol priveľa otázok“. Bolo mi oznámené, že moja personal initial investment of $30,000 will be returned, a že mám publicly announce, že odchádzam z expedície „z osobných dôvodov“.
Since this statement is not true, I have decided reject this request.
K3JO, LU9ESD, RN5M and JT1CO received notification that they can participate if they want, a ja budem plne rešpektovať ich rozhodnutie. K dnešnému dňu sa však zdá, že none of them will travel to Bouvet.
However, one cannot fail to notice that this decision has been made right after that, ako vedenie got all the equipment, na ktoré čakalo — antény, rádiá, a všetku techniku, ktorú som osobne zabezpečil. Once they had everything they needed, I became useless.
Of course I am deeply disappointed from this result. I want to sincerely thank the many members of the DX community who supported me and looked forward to seeing us at Bouvet — especially on the low bands where we committed to providing complete worldwide coverage.
I share the same disappointment you will feel after reading this letter. believe me — I too feel used, cheated and deeply disappointed.
To everyone who has supported me for decades - thank you for your trust, friendship and belief in my team. Those who know me know how much I love this hobby, a že som dlhé roky pomáhal a prispieval k jeho rozvoju — no odteraz tak budem robiť much more careful, with regard to who I work with.
My name, honor, and dignity remain intact—as does mine love for amateur radio.
73 and goodbye to bands,
Krassy Petkov, K1LZ
[1] https://www.DX-world.net/an-open-letter-to-the-DX-community