The era of the professional wireless operator has ended. CW communications has all but disappeared from anywhere other than the amateur radio community. The maritime, airline, military, and telecommunications industries no longer employ radio operators. Computers, digital technology, cellular networks, and satellites provide reliable communications capabilities over every inch of the Earth’s surface with a reliability and reach that would have been beyond anyone’s wildest imaginations ninety years ago. In 2015, the Board of Directors of the VWOA formally redefinined the organization. It is no longer a membership organization of active and retired radio operators. – from the VWOA website