Heathkit Educational Systems hopes to reenter the Amateur Radio market by the end of 2011. Back in August, Heathkit announced its return to the kit business and actively solicited suggestions. The response from Amateur Radio operators convinced Heathkit to develop several Amateur Radio products.

Ernie Wake, director, Marketing/Sales, told the ARRL:

“When we made the announcement on our web page about a month ago we had no intention of entering the Amateur Radio kit market. The response was really overwhelming, exciting and scary. The scary part is that the brand name has so much loyalty that we don’t want to disappoint the people who have such fond memories.

“We are working on developing a few Amateur Radio kits. Initially, the kit line will include a few ‘accessories’ like kits for a Dual Watt Meter, Antenna Tuners and the Cantenna. Once we are a little more ‘settled’ I think we will develop a QRP receiver. We won’t rush to market just to get there. We want to develop a line of kits in the tradition of Heathkit. I’m hoping to have one-two kits by the end-of-the-year.”