Would the Emergency Ham Network protect our licensed allocations?

What would you use a national digital network for when there was not an emergency? It makes no sense to develop such a complex challenging project just to leave it sitting waiting for its ultimate test.

For context, let's consider the lonely UPS powering your computer system. For months it sits apparently powering your electronics, then suddenly no utility power. It beeps, falters then dies because the battery was bad. Has that happened to you?

The proposed Emergency Ham Network (EHN) should be operational 24/7. That means it needs to be used all the time to ensure it is working. I think there are a couple of reasons why:

The first is the obvious one of making sure the links work, traffic can flow, and the many parts of the network are working together.

The second, less obvious. The network will use many different licensed armature frequencies. Today many of these are severely underused, if we as a body of operators, don't step up and use them we might find the FCC has other customers who will.

So, I would make the case that an Emergency Ham Network could be considered as an emergency plan to get more of our licensed frequencies used and therefore protected.

That would make the EHN a tool for getting more people active on the bands and increase the interest in becoming a Ham. I'm good with that!