UPDATE 22 Feb. 2020:
Following the disappointing news earlier this week the Swains2020 team is extremely happy that we can announce the new schedule for the W8S DXpedition to Swains Island. The team will be on the island from September 23 until October 6, 2020.
UPDATE 19 Feb. 2020:We like to thank all our sponsors and supporters for the understanding and confidence we have received after the message about the forced postponement of the DXpedition.
We are therefore very happy that we can already share the new planning with you.
In close cooperation with Alex Jennings, the representative of Swains Island, the team has decided to postpone the W8S DXpedition to Swains Island to autumn of 2020.
The reason behind this postponement is the travel restrictions when entering American Samoa, restrictions imposed by the Department of Health of American Samoa as a result of the Corona virus outbreak.
The Department of Health allows non-residents to enter American Samoa only via Hawaii, after a 14 days mandatory quarantine in Hawaii.
For the team this is not a workable situation. It would require extending the holiday time by an additional 2 weeks, re-routing of the flights and purchasing new tickets etc.
Everything is prepared for our DXpedition, and we are eager to go, but unfortunately the Corona virus outbreak is out of our control.
Although this is a disappointment for everyone, the W8S DXpedition is not cancelled, but just postponed for later this year!