10/14/2025
Edward F. "Ed" Hare, Jr., W1RFI, who spent decades as an employee of the ARRL
Laboratory, has become a Silent Key. He died on October 10, 2025, at the age of
74 after an illness.
Hare was first licensed as a teenager in 1963 as KN1CV (later KA1CV) and was an
active ham throughout his life. He was an avid QRP operator, earning his Worked
All States certificate with 250 milliwatts on CW. In his professional life, he
was an accomplished product test engineer and a leading expert on radio
frequency interference (RFI). After an industry career in product testing, he
came to work for ARRL in 1986.
During his tenure, Hare led the technical aspects of many important advocacy
efforts taken on by the ARRL Lab, including the successful fight against
Broadband over Power Line (BPL). Hare's extensive technical studies and solid
factual data effectively supported ARRL's Court of Appeals submissions against
the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), thus contributing substantially to
ARRL's victory in causing the FCC's flawed BPL rules to be remanded to the FCC.
Hare developed a waiver process in cooperation with the United States military
to allow amateur radio access to the 70-centimeter band near several high-power
radar sites. He also started the ARRL RFI Program, which helps amateurs work
through the FCC to resolve interference to their station. He was also
instrumental in ARRL's 2023 defense against the high-speed stock traders'
petition that would risk significant interference to amateur HF bands.
Hare was a prolific author about RFI, from articles for QST and The ARRL
Handbook to articles about the practical aspects of Electromagnetic
Compatibility (EMC) appeared in professional trade journals. He was also one of
the editors and authors of The ARRL RFI Book, and the author of the ARRL's book
on RF exposure, RF Exposure and You.
Hare held a seat for amateur radio on many industry committees, including
several of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and on
the American National Standards Committee C63, which develops standards for
testing and measuring EMC.
Many radio clubs may recall Hare's popular "Stump the Speaker" feature that he
held after giving presentations. Hare would allow the audience to try to stump
him with radio questions and trivia. It was rarely successful.
He retired from ARRL as Laboratory Manager in 2023 but continued to serve in
the Lab as a volunteer until the time of his passing.
He frequently mentored members of the ARRL staff on improving their operating
skills and encouraged them to grow as radio amateurs. He was especially fond of
creating new CW operators.
Hare was a member of the ARRL Diamond Club and the A1 Operators Club. The ARRL
Board of Directors bestowed the ARRL Technical Merit Award on Hare in 2008 for
his work on BPL, an honor that, before Hare, was last awarded in 1976 and has
not been given since.
Information about services is pending and will be posted here when available.
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