Two hams in Italy have set what is claimed to be a world distance record for WiFi transmissions on 5 GHz. According to Newsline, the two hams were not identified in the report posted recently on the Wi-FiPlanet website, but did say the contact was part of a project of the Italian Center for Radio Activities (CISAR), whose spokesperson is a ham, IZ3HAD.
According to the report, the two hams used dish antennas and Ubiquity 802.11a modems to establish a link between the summit of Monte Amita in Tuscany and the island of Sardinia, nearly 200 miles away. Most of the path was over the Tyrrhenian Sea. IZ3HAD said the experiment was a first step in creating "a wide-band digital network to connect all Italian ham radio users to each other and to other services," including D-STAR, Echolink and digital amateur television. Several 5-GHz WiFi channels overlap the 5-centimeter amateur band.