Hello Karen:

Although I am not familiar with the Vertex 710, I did look at the specs and
am familiar in general with the many radios that are on the market.
Although I did not look at the schematic, I doubt whether the handheld could
be converted to the 2 meter ham band transmit. The reason is that the
aviation band uses amplitude modulation, while the two meter amateur band is
almost exclusively frequency modulation. So, even if the transmitter could
be enabled on that band, no one would understand you.

An fm transmitter is entirely different than an am transmitter and I am not
aware of any transceiver designed for one mode that will throw in a
different type mode - unless it is specifically designed for that particular
purpose.

The good news is that 2 meter handhelds are so cheap and small, that you be
able to purchase new ones for only the cost of a couple of tows.

Cngratulations on the ham ticket. If you want to track your flights, you
may want to look into APRS. Then, the person on the ground can see exactly
where their spouse is flying.

73, Colin K7FM