| By KH6OWL on May 23, 2026 |
For more than seventy years, Dr. Franklin Young, KH6CDO, has been a fixture in Hawaii amateur radio. Physician, military veteran, mentor, and longtime host of Hawaii’s well-known Swap and Shop net, Dr. Young’s story mirrors the growth of amateur radio from the post-World War II era to the modern digital age. |
Born and raised in Honolulu, Dr. Young first discovered amateur radio in 1955 at just twelve years old through the Boy Scouts. |
“A very generous supporter of the troop donated a Hallicrafters SX-28 receiver,” Young recalled. “It was a huge radio; the same kind used on B-52 bombers during the war. I looked at it and fell in love with it.” |
That moment sparked a lifelong passion. |
“I turned it on and somehow tuned into 40 meters. I heard Morse code, and that was it,” he said. |
Young originally received the novice call sign WH6CDO. In those days, novice operators carried the “Whiskey” prefix while general-class operators used “King Henry,” eventually becoming KH6CDO. |
“I’ve always kept my call sign,” he said. “Your call sign is your name.” |
After graduating from high school, Young attended Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska, where he studied medicine while remaining active in amateur radio. Following seven years in Nebraska, he moved to Los Angeles for medical training. Dr. Frank said, “I wanted to go someplace where they serve rice instead of potato’s. And so, I went to Los Angeles.” |
A lifelong Dodgers fan dating back to the Brooklyn Dodgers era, Young chose Los Angeles County General Hospital partly because of its proximity to Dodger Stadium and Chinatown. |
Young spent one year at the County General Hospital, and then another year at Children’s Hospital, of Orange County, which is near Anaheim. And there are a lot of freeway wrecks and a lot of fires. So Dr Frank learned to treat burns. The Army liked that because they were Soldiers being evacuated from Vietnam to Tripler with Napalm bombs burns. |
While living in Southern California, he purchased a Helicrafter Radio but became increasingly interested in Collins Radio equipment after visiting Henry’s Radio in Anaheim. “That’s where I really got interested in Collins radios,” he said. |
During the Vietnam War, Young was drafted into military service. The Army assigned him to Tripler Army Medical Center, TAMC, in Honolulu because of his medical expertise treating premature newborns and severe burn injuries. |
At TAMC, Dr. Young remained active in amateur radio through the Military Auxiliary Radio System (MARS), operating phone patches for deployed servicemen in Vietnam. |
“We were running phone patches for the guys in Vietnam back to the mainland so they could talk to their families,” he explained. “Back then there were no satellites, and long-distance calls were very expensive.” |
Young spent four years at TAMC before being discharged and then he opened his own medical practice in Honolulu, where he continues to work today. |
In addition to medicine, Young became known throughout Hawaii’s amateur radio community for his dedication to preserving and supporting classic radio equipment. |
As a young operator, he was mentored by Francis Blatt, an FAA engineer known for his technical expertise. |
“He could fix anything,” Young said. “He taught me how to repair Collins radios because the FAA used Collins’ equipment.” |
That mentorship later influenced Young’s involvement with the Hawaii Swap and Shop net. |
In 1978, Air Force operators stationed at Hickam Air Force Base created the Swap and Shop as a way for local hams to buy and sell radio equipment over the air. When the original operators rotated out of Hawaii, Young assumed control of the net in 1982. |
At the time, many families of deceased operators had no easy way to sell estate equipment. “There was no Craigslist or internet,” Young said. “We were trying to help families sell the radios.” |
More than four decades later, the weekly Swap and Shop net continues on the air using the Diamond Head two-meter repeater every Tuesday evening following the local radio club net. Today you can also find the Swap and Shop listed on the Big Island Website at www.40meter.net and www.earchi.org. |
Young remains active on both HF and VHF radio. Even after recent storm damage disabled one of his antennas, he quickly repaired the station and returned to the air. |
Today, Dr. Franklin Young, KH6CDO, represents a living bridge between amateur radio’s postwar golden age and the modern era. Through medicine, military service, mentorship, and decades of volunteer radio operations, he has become one of Hawaii amateur radio’s most respected voices. |
HF antenna | 
Antenna Farm | 
Pulleys for end poles |
Pulleys for corners | 
Wire Antennas |
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| Some of the equipment for estate sales he helps families with |
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