Yaesu FT-101 HF Transceiver

Sako Hasegawa, JA1MP, president and founder of Yaesu Musen, was more interested in talking about the future than the past. Much of this story comes from old Yaesu (Swiss) importers Sommerkamp, DJ2YJ/EA8YS, and Joop Sterke, PA0UM.

Yaesu Musen began as General Television Service in suburban Ota-ku — tube TV sets repaired by motorbike couriers. When radio communications took off in the mid-1960s, the site moved to the Yaesu district between Ginza and Tokyo Station.

The name Yaesu has a Dutch connection: in 1600 Jan Joosten van Lodenstein was washed ashore from the ship De Liefde. His name was Japanized to Yanyosu, later shortened to Yaesu — the district where he was granted land for service to the Shogun. Wil Adams (basis for Clavell’s Shogun) was another survivor.

Yaesu Avenue has a monument to Jan Joosten. So Yaesu is 400 years old — not your FT-101, but the name, and it rightly deserves consideration! Kjell Strom PB3SM-SM6CPI & Carol Maher W4CLM

What is Fox Tango? Founded in 1972 by Milton Lowens (N4ML) as a Yaesu users group — “By and for owners of Yaesu amateur radio equipment.” Milton edited the Fox Tango Newsletter for nearly 14 years.

Factory engineers translated member suggestions into Japanese and improved the FT-101 during production. Download the free 1972 newsletters (ZIP) or see the full set on CD ROM.

With International Radio (Inrad) and Fox Tango on Groups.IO, the entire 14 years of Fox Tango Newsletters plus 7 years of Inrad Yaesu newsletters are available on a single CD — covering amateur radio evolution from 1972 through 1992.

The first year was printed on a Mimeo machine; later issues greatly improved. A cumulative index is available on the ordering page.

Carol L. Maher W4CLM
Administrator, Fox Tango International