Winlink is a global radio email system. Amateur stations connect to gateway stations by HF, VHF or UHF; the gateway relays messages into the normal internet email system and back.
Why emergency groups care
Winlink moves structured, verifiable text — ICS forms, damage assessments, resource requests, health and welfare lists — with attachments, from a location with no connectivity at all. Voice nets cannot do that accurately at volume.
What you need
- Winlink Express (free for amateur use) on a Windows laptop, or Pat on Linux/macOS
- A sound-card interface for HF (VARA HF or ARDOP) or a TNC/packet radio for VHF
- A Winlink account, which is free and tied to your call sign
Modes of operation
- Telnet — over the internet, for practice and testing.
- Packet — VHF/UHF, fast, needs a local gateway.
- VARA HF / ARDOP — HF, works nationwide, slower and propagation-dependent.
- Peer to peer — two stations directly, no gateway, when infrastructure is down entirely.
Practice before you need it
Send a Winlink message weekly and take part in the regular Winlink exercises. The failure mode in a real activation is always the same: software that was last configured a year ago on a laptop with a dead battery.