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STARTING IN CB
Everything you need to know from equipment
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Radio in Ukraine
How war has changed the
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Introduction to HD
The growth of the format
sweeping across America
REVIEW Testing Bonito’s
HISTORY The story of the
AntennaJet AAS-300DP
BBC’s Antarctic message
The editor tries this active, lossless,
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How the World Service puts together
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• Unit 1
• Fitzherbert Spur
• Farlington
• Portsmouth
• Hampshire
• PO6 1TT
Index
Contents
Favourites
Reviews
Features
News
Profiles
Cover Story
54 Push-to-Talk: Introduction to CB
ISSN 1748-8117
Tim Kirby provides a contemporary route into Citizens Band radio, looking at modern equipment and
aerials, callsigns and customs, and at the particular
attraction of this mode of hobby communication.
June 2022 Vol. 17 No 6
On sale: 26 May 2022
Next issue on sale: 30 June 2022
RadioUser
Warners Group Publications plc
The Maltings, West Street
Bourne, Lincs PE10 9PH
www.warnersgroup.co.uk
Tel: 01778 391000
Editor
Georg Wiessala
wiessala@hotmail.com
Designer
Mike Edwards
mike.edwards@warnersgroup.co.uk
Advertisement Manager
Kristina Green
kristina.green@warnersgroup.co.uk
Tel: 01778 392096
Production Manager
Nicola Glossop
nicola.glossop@warnersgroup.co.uk
Production Assistant
Charlotte Bamford
charlotte.bamford@warnersgroup.co.uk
Marketing Manager
Katherine Brown
katherine.brown@warnersgroup.co.uk
Marketing Executive
Luke Hider
luke.hider@warnersgroup.co.uk
Publisher
Rob McDonnell
robm@warnersgroup.co.uk
Technical Help
We regret that replies to technical queries
cannot be given over the telephone. Any
technical queries by e-mail are very unlikely
to receive immediate attention either. So, if
you require help with problems relating to
topics covered by RU, then please write to the
Editorial Offices, we will do our best to help.
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NEW
GEAR
The latest products from AOR, Xiegu,
Sharman, RAOTA and much more
June 2022 £5.49
For the latest offer call
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STARTING IN CB
Everything you need to know from equipment
to call signs and QSL cards to get you on the air
Radio in Ukraine
How war has changed the
broadcasting landscape
Introduction to HD
The growth of the format
sweeping across America
REVIEW Testing Bonito’s
AntennaJet AAS-300DP
HISTORY The story of the
BBC’s Antarctic message
The editor tries this active, lossless,
dual-powered, RF signal splitter
How the World Service puts together
its traditional midwinter broadcast
01778 395161
See page six for details.
Save up to 27%.
Rallies & Events Short Wave Stations
Plan your summer days out inside Frequencies for private Euro broadcasters
001 June Front.indd 1
Display until 30th June 2022
13/05/2022 09:05
Read on any device, anywhere, anytime at
http://bit.ly/raus-mysub22
28 Feedback
28
7 News and Products
Take a look at a remarkable reader’s shack, learn
about one radio lady’s amazing hobby tale and see
what some of our readers have come up with in their
posts to the editor.
New AOR DV-10 Software, Xiegu GNR1 Audio Filter,
Sharman Aerials, Modelling with AN-SOF7.10, BDXC
Broadcasts in English, OTNews, Rails & Radio, and the
Global Radio Guide (see also pp. 19, 39, 53, and at
www.radioenthusiast.co.uk).
30 Bonito AntennaJet AAS-300DP
14 Book Review
34 Emerging Issues in Radio
David Harris discovers a captivating life story authored by a radio presenter; the book blends biography with social history and represents a sympathetic
portrayal of mental health issues.
Returning to the theme of Ukraine, Chrissy Brand
evaluates the changes brought about by the war on
the Ukrainian radio landscape, investigating some
transmissions both from and to the country.
16 Calling Antarctica
38 The Story of the Marcuse Bench
Alan Pennington relates the fascinating backstory of
this month’s annual Antarctic Midwinter Broadcast,
from the BBC World Service – ‘A Breath of Home Air’
for those working in the Antarctic.
RAOTA President David Reynolds, G3ZPF remembers
a ‘benchmark’ visit and shows how Gerald Marcuse,
G2NM played a part in both amateur radio and the
BBC World Service.
20 Airband News
40 Digital Radio | Review
David Smith analyses what the war in Ukraine means
for European air space, tracks some drones and
surveillance planes, explains Warton ATC and has
updates on RAF Northolt and Prestwick.
Kevin Ryan reviews the Auna IR160 Internet Radio,
introduces the HD Radio/ IBOC digital transmission
format and describes the best uses of the mediaU
portal.
The editor takes a look at the Bonito AntennaJet
AAS-300DP active, dual-powered, lossless, RF signal
splitter and connects this small shack accessory to
diverse radios and aerials.
22 Airshows 2022
David Smith then reveals Part Two of our seasonal
RadioUser Guide to this summer’s airshows, aircraftthemed occasions, historical tributes, and related
meetings and displays.
24 Project Pluto and More
Martín Butera profiles the Deep Space Communications Center in Crimea (DSCC), the setting of
mankind’s first attempts to send messages to the
stars, as well as a valuable scientific asset.
27 Rallies and Events
Keep up to date on Facebook
www.facebook.com/radioenthusiasts
Follow us on Twitter
@REnthusiasts
Welcome to the UK’s most complete listing of Rallies,
Conferences, Buildathlons, Swapmeets and Trade
Shows; this is your one-stop shop for planning your
visit this summer and autumn.
24
Sign up to our FREE email newsletter at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
4
RadioUser June 2022
Editorial
Welcome
From Ukraine
to Antarctica
16
44 International Radio & New Media
Chrissy Brand asks whether independent blogging by
a range of new reporting talent can be seen as a new
variety of ‘free radio’ and then calms down with the
aid of soothing vibes in her car.
47 TV and Radio, Past and Present
Keith Hamer and Garry Smith take a deep dive into the
history of the BBC throughout the 1970s, unearthing
memories of ground-breaking technological developments and inventive programming.
50 Aerials Now
Keith Rawlings works with a simple but ingenious
multi-band dipole aerial, testing out its construction,
key characteristics and use at home and further
afield.
53 European Private Short Wave
Stations | News
Stig Hartvig Nielsen unveils the latest issue of his
compilation of Private European Short Wave Stations,
many of which are especially active at weekends.
57 Marconi’s German Heirs
Scott Caldwell introduces a lesser-known German
trio of radio pioneers: Adolf Karl Heinrich Slaby, Karl
Ferdinand Braun and Count Georg von Arco.
60 Maritime Matters
Robert Connolly expounds on how radio communications technology can help to fight modern piracy on
the high seas, providing an overview of AIR, DGPS,
GMDSS, and LRIT transmissions.
60
Georg Wiessala
wiessala@hotmail.com
H
ello and welcome to
the June edition of
RadioUser. With half the
year gone already, there
are plenty more radio subjects to be
covered in the second half, judging
by your responses and the many
contributions and article proposals I
have already received.
But staying with the present, we
once again offer a smorgasbord of
radio topics, which, I hope, you will
find both informative and inspiring. In
our features section, Alan Pennington
looks at the history and technology
behind this month’s Antarctic
Midwinter Broadcast from the BBC
World Service.
Ukraine features a few times this
month: Martín Butera introduces a
strategic radio astronomy facility
in Crimea, while Chrissy Brand
outlines the wider Ukrainian radio
scene, which is undergoing colossal
changes. What is more, David Smith
follows the military and aeronautical
tracks of the conflict, both in situ and
in as far as it impinges on European
air space.
In terms of reviews, Kevin Ryan has
enjoyed using the Auna IR160 Internet
Radio, and I have had the opportunity
to host the Bonito AntennaJet AAS300DP Aerial Splitter in the editor’s
shack; read on about what I linked up
to it, and how it all went. Then go on
to build the simple multi-band dipole
aerial suggested by Keith Rawlings in
the Aerials Now column.
In our regular sections, Tim Kirby
provides an introduction to Citizens
Band (CB) radio, bringing the culture
and history of the format right up to
the present. And Robert Connolly
takes a look at how radio can help
to combat modern forms of piracy
at Sea, covering a range of contemporary
radio modes.
Elsewhere, you may wish to pick up
more on mental health and radio, learn
about Project Pluto, discover a bench with
a radio legacy and take an in-depth look at
the HD Radio format, prevalent across the
Pond.
The radio history strand this month
encompasses Scott Caldwell’s group
biography of radio pioneers, one of whom
became known as the ‘German Marconi’.
Meanwhile, Keith Hamer and Garry Smith
use the Tardis to travel to the BBC in
the 1970s – I feel certain that you will
have heard of some of the programmes
remembered here!
Last, but by no means least, may I draw
your attention to our indispensable ‘breadand-butter items’? Part Two of our 2022 Air
Show Guide, the compilations of European
Short Wave Stations, our Rallies & Events
list, Feedback section and our extra-large
News & Products department this month.
Have fun with your radio, enjoy this issue
and keep sending in those proposals!
Georg Wiessala
Editor, Radio User Magazine
www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
Why not visit our new online bookshop at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/store
June 2022 RadioUser
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ing rather proud of being its temporary owner. However, airport security is rarely much
fun, and rather than have to put the Tecsun
through the scanner along with my laptop
and bag of liquids, I bade it au revoir at the
check-in desk.
I had taken far larger radios away with me
in the past. I remember my first foreign holiday being a family fortnight in Austria when
I insisted my parents allow me to pack a
1970’s Fidelity Rad 27. No one was going to
stop me this time, either.
Appearance
This DSP Noice Cancelling
In-Line Module Worth £159
Chrissy Brand
chrissyLB@hotmail.co.uk
December 2021 £4.99
www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
TECSUN H-501x
We test this highly anticipated receiver
to see how practical it is on your travels
M
y initial impression of the
Tecsun H-501x was that it
was a larger receiver than
I had realised, and a slight
panic set in as to how I
might take it abroad with me. It is a large
portable and I am used to packing small radios on my trips. However, that feeling very
quickly subsided. This Tecsun is similar in
size to many gadgets that people take on
holidays. Larger than a tablet, for instance,
but far smaller than a laptop.
The radio’s exact dimensions are 277 x
164 x 44 mm. This makes the H-501x of
a size that could be transported in a backpack easily enough. It is also a very good
size for a radio that could sit in the shack,
the office, sitting room or your kitchen.
Big is Beautiful
Latest Products
The quality of sound, the tone and the loudness all ensure that the radio can be placed
in any room in the house and be heard
clearly and pleasantly, without distortion.
It is a case of ‘big is beautiful’ – certain-
Pages of new gear from
the major manufacturers
The Tecsun
H-501x Deluxe
Shortwave Radio
Chrissy Brand puts the highly-anticipated Tecsun
H-501x receiver through its paces during a trip to
Portugal, appreciating both the technical performance
and the unique design philosophy of this new radio.
ly in terms of its robustness, the generously
sized display read-out, and because of the
benefit of having space to accommodate
two good speakers.
Maybe it is just me, but the tan-coloured,
leatherette carry case is reminiscent of a
men’s grooming set or women’s vanity case
from yesteryear. It has a reassuring look
of quality and a touch of luxury, especially
when compared to the pouches that come
with smaller, cheaper portable radios.
The receiver fitted very neatly into the
small suitcase I took away with me, wellprotected by rolled up clothes and a beach
towel. The case itself would give protection
enough on its own though.
I did rather want to carry the radio around
in Manchester Airport with me, as I was feel-
Why not visit our new online bookshop at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/store
14
RadioUser December 2021
Whilst very much being a state-of-the-art
contemporary radio, the Tecsun H-501x
does also have a reassuring ‘retro’ feel
about it. I showed it to product designer Tim Sutton-Brand, who was impressed
with the radio’s functionality and design; he
also commented that it had a boxy, classic1980s design vibe, appearance-wise.
The two speakers, the layout of buttons
and dials and the shape all reminded me a
little of some of the 1990s Grundig Satellit
receivers, and maybe even some of the first
short wave receivers that I used, back in the
1980s. I must emphasise, however, that l
consider this to be a positive thing.
The five control knobs consist of a trio of
volume, bass and treble on the left front and
side of the receiver. A fine-tuning dial and a
larger regular tuning dial sit on the right-hand
side. I always wonder if this standard design
implementation ever causes problems for
left-handed users?
The dials give the user an incredibly tactile
experience and are made to a high standard. I simply wanted to turn them with my
thumbs all the time – such is their ease of
use, enticing you to explore just a little further, gliding along whichever band you happen to be on. This is surely a DXer’s delight!
The rubberised surface on the side of the
two tuning dials enable you to quickly spin
along the bands, whilst the more robust,
metal, ribbed dials, accessed from the front
of the receiver, emphasise that you are in
control and are driving this set. Of course,
you can enter any frequency by using the
keypad, too.
The LCD display is of a substantial size,
large enough to see from a distance and,
when close-up, does not require my middleaged eyes to use reading glasses (which I
have to resort to on many radios).
The Listening Experience
The long wave band is found more easily
than on some radios, as it is clearly marked:
Just press the medium wave/long wave
button and there it is, you ‘zap’ between
the two bands. It is also simple to scroll
through each of the short wave bands by
pressing the + or – keys. You can store
station frequencies in the memory to your
heart’s content. There are 3150 presets you
can use, and which are separated over 25
memory pages. This enables the storage of
100 FM stations, 100 on medium wave, 100
on long wave (not that there are more than
40 or so long wave stations), 250 on short
wave, 100 on SSB, and 100 on synchronous
detection.
The tone can be beautiful, although is
slightly dependent on the station heard. This
is where the two speakers, bass and treble
controls are welcome and enhance the
listening experience.
The speakers produce a very good timbre,
and I found there to be no distortion, even
when turned to full volume. I turned the
volume up to the maximum while listening
to Beatriz Rosario on the local FM station,
Radio Portimão (106.5MHz). The singer,
who takes the Portuguese musical genre
of Fado to a new, alternative level, sounded
as if she could have been on the apartment
balcony with me. The rap music of Carlão,
a middle-aged Angolan singer, had a fresh
urgency with all the musicians involved on
the track Os Tais, being heard in equally fine
voice. As well as music, jingles, news and
features all sounded crisp and clear on FM.
I even enjoyed listening to advertisements,
for once.
Short wave was, of course, dependent on
propagation. Tuning to 13740kHz at 1845
UTC one evening, I enjoyed a Radio France
International broadcast, in French. An all 5
SINPO helped the song Tala n’dile, by Ariel
Sheney featuring DJ Arafat, sound great.
BBC World Service, from the Woofferton
transmitter back in the UK, on 13660kHz at
1800 UTC sounded excellent, and just up
the dial, American evangelism was coming
in loud and clear from World Christian
Broadcasting from the Madagascar
transmitter, on 13670kHz. Meanwhile, the
medium wave was dominated each night by
many powerful Spanish stations.
As you would expect of any quality radio,
there is a gentle fade away of the signal
when you push the red on/off button.
This bids a gentle adieu to the singers or
presenters you have been engaged with and
is always preferable to an abrupt cut-off.
For the latest news and product reviews, visit www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
15
December 2021 RadioUser
Editor’s Shack
Getting to grips with the
ATS-20 SI4732 receiver
HISTORY Farewell to
a Popular Museum
DIGITAL We Review
The Collingwood Hertitage
Collection and how its loss
is a sad day for radio history
New hybrid radio from Germany
with a range of recording options
and networking funtionalities
the Telstar DIRA M 6i
Display until 30th December 2021
2021 Aerial Review ● Coastal Radio Stations ● Moonraker Vertical Antenna ● 9/11 Radio Comms
Take out a digital subscription today
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This DSP
Noice Can
In-Line Mo
celling
dule Worth
£159
What’s
new
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What’s new in the world of radio
News
Radio Currents
Have you got something new to tell our readers about? If so, then drop a line to wiessala@hotmail.com
OP
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PR
Nevada:
AOR DV10
Scanning
Receivers
Nevada Radio has just received
the latest shipment of the AOR
DV10 scanning receivers,
now with Firmware Version
2203A. This firmware has many
improvements over previous
versions and +enhances the
performance of the radio
significantly. Pictured is Gav
Clark, who decided to visit
Nevada/ Waters & Stanton
in person at the Portsmouth
warehouse to collect his new
radio.
www.nevada.co.uk
www.nevadaradio.co.uk
www.hamradiostore.co.uk
www.mahaenergy.co.uk
BDXC: Broadcasts
in English (A22)
Published in May, the BDXC Broadcasts in
English guide covers the A22 Schedules.
Broadcasts in English is compiled by BDXC’s
Dave Kenny. It includes details of all known
international broadcasts in English on short
wave and medium wave for the current
schedule period, as well as selected domestic
English-language broadcasts on short wave.
The 24-page booklet comes in a handy timeorder throughout and covers all target areas
worldwide. Transmitter sites are included, where
possible, along with schedules for Media &
Mailbag Programmes and Digital Radio Mondiale
(DRM) services in English. This is compiled by
Dave Kenny with thanks also for help from Alan
Roe, Rumen Pankov and Tony Rogers. Details:
UK £3, Europe £4 or €6, Rest of World £5 or $8.
Please send orders (UK cheques/ Postal Orders
payable to “British DX Club”) to British DX Club,
19 Park Road, Shoreham-by-Sea, BN43 6PF
(payment in cash [$ or €] or PayPal only). All
prices above include postage. PayPal payments
to: bdxc@bdxc.org.uk Payments are also
welcome by bank transfer at no extra cost .
Please e-mail for details:
(SOURCE: BDXC | Chrissy Brand).
http://bdxc.org.uk/bie.html
Global Radio Guide
(GRG) Summer 2022
The GRG for this summer is now out (4th May
2022). During times of crisis, radio hobbyists
turn on their radios and tune to the short wave
‘global’ radio bands for context, perspective,
and insight into events from around the globe.
With the Russian-Ukrainian war raging on
and tensions continuing to rise in other world
hotspots, radio hobbyists are still following the
latest news from the front lines using short wave
broadcasts and other radio services. The world
has held its breath during the Russian invasion
of Ukraine as images of the human suffering
of war have brought back old memories and
old fears from years gone by. Just like these
events have brought up once buried feelings, it
has also brought what many thought to be ‘old’
technology back to the forefront [...]
(SOURCE: Teak Publishing, via David Harris).
https://www.teakpublishing.com
For the latest news and product reviews, visit www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
June 2022 RadioUser
7
News
What’s new in the world of radio
discusses ways to increase the chances of
coming across our overseas members on air.
Although the association is interested in the
history and traditions of amateur radio it is
equally involved with the future of the hobby,
and it has plenty of members using the latest
equipment and modes of transmission.
To find out more write to: RAOTA Membership
Secretary, 65 Montgomery Street, Hove,
East Sussex BN3 5BE.
Visit the website at
www.raota.org
NEWS FROM RAOTA JUST OUT: The Summer
2022 Edition of the quarterly RAOTA magazine
(OTNews) has been sent to the printers and the
RAOTA audio version reader. The aim is that both
printed and audio versions arrive with members
at the same time. The issue covers an aerial
made by G3ZPF back in 1982 called the Winfield
Wonder Wire. This is, basically, an 84ft doublet,
named after a roll of Woolworth’s ‘own-brand’
bell-wire. Probably not the best material to use,
but it was put up to replace its predecessor,
which was overcome by the weather. Despite its
‘uninspiring’ construction, the aerial achieved
5- band DXCC by 1982; and, despite being only
25ft in the air, managed to work ZL on 80m
(admittedly, just once). W3WEG continues his
‘Antenna Chronicles’ series, and this 3rd part is
entitled The Melted Matchbox. G4GHU continues
his series of cartoons, and G3ZPF presents
useful weblinks, covering the design and use of
baluns/chokes, includin one for the 1937 issue of
the Jones Antenna Handbook.
Its contents are still relevant today because the
laws of physics are unchanged. G3RZP provides
an overview of the Reflex Klystron and VK6 and
offers an article with the intriguing title of The
WS17 Searchlight Radio. GW3XJQ describes a
get-together of some of our Welsh members,
and G4JCP discusses the impact of computers
on our hobby. BTW: Some think that you need to
have been licensed for 25 years to join RAOTA,
but you do not.
Anyone with an active interest in amateur radio
is welcome to become a member. There is no
need to hold (or be qualified to hold) an amateur
radio licence. We have several SWLs in our ranks.
RAOTA is based in the UK but has a growing
overseas membership now, including one in
Tahiti (!) With HF conditions on the rise, G3ZPF
RSGB RADCOM TECHNICAL EDITOR: The
RSGB is recruiting a RadCom Technical Editor.
Reporting to the Managing Editor, the successful
candidate will:
Commission articles and liaise with authors
on their articles; Work closely with the expert
volunteers on the RSGB Technical Forum; Subedit copy sent in by contributors and regular
columnists; Help to guide the content of RadCom
Basics and RadCom Plus supplements with their
editors; Be part of the team that puts together
GB2RS Answer member queries on technical and
licensing matters; Help develop the entire coordinated RadCom portfolio, including exploiting
new media opportunities; You must be positive,
enthusiastic about technology and have an
excellent command of English, possess a good
eye for detail and be able to work to exacting
standards, often under pressure; A wide range
of radio and electronic knowledge is required,
including amateur radio. This staff position
is based at RSGB headquarters near Bedford,
although an element of working from home could
be discussed.
The salary is negotiable, depending upon
relevant qualifications and experience. For more
detailed information about the role and how to
apply, see the careers page on the RSGB website:
www.rsgb.org/careers
SIMON MAYO RECEIVES MBE: Broadcaster
Simon Mayo was awarded an MBE in a ceremony
at Buckingham Palace in May. Mayo received
his medal from Prince William, at the Palace
yesterday after being included in the Queen’s
Birthday Honours list last year for his services to
broadcasting and charity. When the award was
announced last June, Simon commented: “I have
to admit I am gobsmacked. Totally speechless.
Which is a poor show for a broadcaster really. I
feel very fortunate and privileged to have some of
the best and most loyal listeners out there. And
all I can promise Greatest Hits Radio and Scala
listeners is that we’ll keep the shows coming, that
they’ll be as good as ever but now with an extra
gong!”
(SOURCE: ontheradio)
https://tinyurl.com/mt4vpscn
XIEGU GNR1:
Digital Noise
Reductionand
Audio Filtering
Nevada Radio and Waters & Stanton are
pleased to announce a new Digital Audio
Filter from XIEGU. The XIEGU GNR1 incorporates both Audio Digital noise reduction
and Audio digital filtering. It will effectively reduce background noise, improve
the signal-to-noise ratio and make received
voice transmissions clearer and more intelligible. The unit will work with both HF and
VHF/UHF radios to give a big improvement
in reception. The device has independent adjustments of both input and output levels to
work with both headphones and an external
speaker, giving up to 3W audio output. XIEGU
also produce a matching 3W Speaker (model
GY03), which is available for the Digital Audio
Filter for £39.95. The XIEGU XRN1 sells for
£229.95 from Nevada or Waters& Stanton.
www.nevadaradio.co.uk
www.hamradiostore.co.uk
https://tinyurl.com/3apak2ee
AN-SOF 7.10:
Now available
for Download
A new, and further improved, version of
the AN-SOF antenna simulation software
suite is now available. Among the new and
improved features, the firm has emphasised
the following:
Access the input impedance and VSWR
easily by going to ‘main menu > Results’.
This avoids selecting the segment where
the source is located to access the input
impedance. NEC designs of antennas over
real ground can now be imported directly
into AN-SOF, through the ‘GN’ command.
The complete real-ground description can
also be exported to an NEC file. The ‘GN’ command can be exported to a Scilab .sce file to
develop scripts and run bulk simulations.
Among these improvements, the makers
have also fixed some bugs reported by users.
Those subscribed to an ‘update-plan’ will
soon receive the link to download AN-SOF
7.10. If you are interested in progressing
to the latest AN-SOF release, please do not
hesitate to contact the developer to receive a
special quote [...].
(SOURCE: Louis Bergman | Keith Rawlings)
Enter our competitions at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/competitions
8
RadioUser June 2022
News
What’s new in the world of radio
OP
ST
S!
ES
PR
New in @ Moonraker
SHARMAN MD-3500 SLIDER 80-6m
(3.5-50MHZ) Mobile Antenna
The MD-3500 is an excellent choice for temporary field operations covering 80
metres to 6 metres. Handling up to 130W, this antenna is at home with any HF radio
for portable operation. The antenna uses a PL259 mount so you can use this on
your existing car mount. Resonance is achieved by sliding the antenna for minimum
SWR. The technical specifications are as follows:
Frequency: 3.5-30/50MHz Band
Max. Power Rating: 130W (SSB)
Impedance: 50Ω
Length: approx. 2.6m (max.)
Connector: PL259
Type: 1/4 wave reduced type (HF Band), 1/4 wave (50MHz).
SHARMAN HLP-270 Dual Band (2 & 70) Halo Aerial
Moonraker are happy to announce a new dual-band Halo aerial is a super lightweight
Half Wave Dipole Square Loop Antenna. Its key features and specifications are as
follows:
High gain, mounted horizontally
Frequency: 140 - 150/ 400 - 470 MHz
Gain: 4 dB(VHF) / 5 dB(UHF)
VSWR: =<1.5
Max. Power: 800 watts
Impedance: 50Ω
Weight: 0.36kg
Connector: SO-239 (UHF)
Dimensions: 11 x 11 in (28 x 28 cm).
(Source: Moonraker)
https://tinyurl.com/2p8k8fvn
https://tinyurl.com/2fb8hjun
RADIO AMATEURS TO COMMEMORATE
AMELIA EARHART’S TRANSATLANTIC
FLIGHT: Radio amateurs in Londonderry and
Kansas will be on the air to celebrate the 90th
anniversary of the transatlantic crossing by
pioneering aviator Amelia Earhart. GB0AEL will
be active between 13th and 30th May 2022. The
North West Group amateur radio club station
MN0NWG will host the activation on most dates
throughout the event, and will also be active (on
the weekend of 21st May 2022) from the field, in
which Amelia touched down on her epic flight .
https://www.qrz.com/db/GB0AEL
KC0VYS will be on the air from the Amelia
Earhart Memorial Airport, starting at 1500 CDT
(2100 GMT) on May 20th and ending at 1000
CDT (1500 GMT) on the 21st.
https://www.qrz.com/db/KC0VYS
(SOURCE: ICQ Amateur/ Ham Radio Podcast)
THE ARIA AWARDS: BBC, Bauer, and Local
Radio Hits Radio has won the UK Station or
Network of the Year award at the Audio and Radio
Industry Awards 2022. Elsewhere at Bauer, The
Dave Berry Breakfast Show won Best Music
Breakfast Show; The John Myers Award for Best
Local Station of the Year went to Clyde 1. The BBC
took home 12 Gold awards in total, with Radio
4 claiming the first spot in six categories – the
Today Programme for Best News Coverage;
Woman’s Hour’s Emma Barnett for Best Speech
Presenter; The Skewer for The Comedy Award;
The Nazi Next Door for Best Factual – Single
Programme; Little Blue Lines for Best Fictional
Storytelling, and Woman’s Hour: Trafficked in
Plain Sight for The Impact Award. Other BBC
winners included Radio 1Xtra for Best Station
Sound, the last Radio 1 Dance Party with Annie
Mac for Best Music Entertainment Show, and
BBC Three Counties’ Justin Dealey for Best Local
Radio Show. News UK took home one Gold award
for talkSPORT’s marketing.
(SOURCES: Industry Press | Bauer | BBC |
RadioToday | ontheradio)
admin@radiotoday.co.uk
https://tinyurl.com/23ysd2u9
For the latest news and product reviews, visit www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
June 2022 RadioUser
9
News
What’s new in the world of radio
RUSSIAN STRIKE ON KYIV KILLS REPORTER
VIRA HYRYCH: A journalist working for Radio
Liberty in Ukraine was killed in Russian rocket
strikes on Kyiv on Thursday evening, the station
has confirmed.
Vira Hyrych was at home when a rocket hit
the residential building where she lived in the
capital, it says. Her body was pulled from the
wreckage on Friday. “She will be remembered
for her professionalism and dedication to our
mission”, the US-funded station says. Kyiv was
hit as UN Secretary-General António Guterres
was visiting the city.
The UN chief – who only a day earlier had
held talks in Moscow with Russian President
Vladimir Putin – said he was “shocked” by the
Russian attack. Ukrainian President Volodymyr
Zelensky accused the Kremlin of trying to
humiliate the UN, while Kyiv Mayor Vitaliy
Klitschko said the Russian leader had shown
“his middle finger” to Mr Guterres. Moscow
has confirmed it hit Ukrainian targets but has
not commented on the strike on the building.
“We are deeply saddened by the death of our
Ukrainian Service staffer Vira Hyrych in Kyiv
overnight” Radio Liberty President Jamie
Fly said in a statement. “We are shocked and
angered by the senseless nature of her death
at home in a country and city she loved. Her
memory will inspire our work in Ukraine and
beyond for years to come.” Read the full story on
the webpages, below:
(SOURCE: BBC News | SWLing Post)
https://tinyurl.com/2n9hkyyw
https://tinyurl.com/ykuwfay5
MOBILE APP AVAILABLE TO NAVIGATE
2022 DAYTON HAMVENTION: Dayton
Hamvention® is offering a free mobile app for
smartphones and tablets to help attendees
navigate the large-scale event, which runs from
the 20th to the 22nd of May 2022 at the Greene
County Fairgrounds and Expo Center in Xenia,
Ohio. The app, which was introduced in 2019, is
offered in a collaborative effort with ARRL The
National Association for Amateur Radio®.
The free ARRL Events app is now available and
already includes Hamvention’s full program,
so attendees can browse and schedule
forums, find affiliated events, and preview
the extensive list of exhibitors. During the
event, attendees can use other app features
to follow the hourly prize drawd populated by
the Dayton Hamvention Prize Committee and
browse building and site maps. Attendees are
also encouraged to tap on the MyProfile icon
in the app to add their name and callsign, email
address, and any additional information they
would like to share with other Hamvention
guests.
Additionally, the MyBadge icon displays a QR
code of your event badge that can be scanned
by another attendee or exhibitor using the
Scan Badge icon – instantly connecting shared
contact information with other hams at the
event.
The app is available for Apple and Android
smart devices; you can also access the web
browser version, which is optimised for nearly
any browser or other type of mobile device.
Visit your app store to download the app
(search “ARRL Events”) or access the links
available on the ARRL EXPO web page.
(SOURCE: Colin Butler | ICQ Amateur / Ham
Radio Podcast [info@icqpodcast.com])
https://tinyurl.com/2zypcwcw
GOVERNMENT IGNORES RADIO IN NEW
BROADCASTING WHITE PAPER: The DCMS
is to issue a new Broadcasting White Paper to
protect British content on television and online
but fails to extend any new rules to radio. Plans
have been announced to better protect viewers
of video-on-demand services from harmful
content, with Ofcom to rule on new content
standards, and given new regulatory powers
over online content.
Radiocentre was expecting the brief to give
protection to radio from tech platforms but the
commercial radio body says our medium has
been ignored. In a statement, the Government
said: “TV and radio lovers will enjoy a new
golden age of programming as the government
updates decades-old broadcasting regulations
to give the UK’s vital public service system a
deal fit for the streaming age.” In response,
Radiocentre commented: “We are incredibly
disappointed that the recommendations from
the DCMS Digital Radio and Audio Review, and
the joint representations that the BBC and the
commercial radio sector have made, asking
for radio to be protected from tech platforms,
have been ignored by the Government. Whilst
the White Paper heralds a new golden age of
British TV, commercial radio and BBC radio are
being left in the cold. It is disappointing that
the Government recognises the importance of
this legislation for Television but not for Radio,
putting the radio industry at a disadvantage over
the television industry. We understand that the
government has reneged on its commitment
to protecting BBC radio and commercial radio
broadcasters. We hope that DCMS will now work
with the Government to ensure that prominence
rules for radio are promptly legislated.”
Separately, the government has today
published its response to the Digital Radio and
Audio Review. DCMS says the government will
continue to engage with the radio industry to
gain a better understanding of the policies and
practices of smart speaker platforms, to ensure
the UK has the best possible regime to allow
radio to continue to reach its listeners well into
the future.
The White Paper does mention the future of
regulation for commercial radio, saying it is
keen to update current rules on where radio is
made and what music it has to play. As soon as
parliamentary time allows, the government will
look at removing the outdated ‘character-ofservice’ requirements, which could bring more
networking on-air and offer different ways a
station could provide local news.
(SOURCE: National and Industry Press | BBC |
Radiocentre | RadioToday)
https://tinyurl.com/234zkhx6
EXTENDING DAYLIGHT SAVING TIME
COULD HURT AM RADIO (USA): The idea
of making Daylight Saving Time (DST) a
permanent fixture has been broadly discussed
before but when the US Senate adopted a bill to
make it the law of the land recently, broadcast
industry representatives quickly jumped up to
protest. The aptly named Sunshine Protection
Act would extend DST Time in the United
States year-round but could have damaging
programming and technical implications for
many AM broadcasters.
The outlook for the legislation in the U.S.
House was unclear, as of early April. For 80
years most Americans have observed the
tradition of resetting their clocks in Spring and
Autumn. Reverting to Standard Time during
winter months has benefitted AM broadcasters
operating only during daylight hours and those
with restricted night-time coverage.
The time shift allows earlier sign-on and
full-power operating times. However, a
change towards extending DST would impact
the critical AM morning drive time on those
stations and potentially hurt revenue generated
by morning shows. Those stations would
benefit from later sign-off times in November,
December, January and February, but not
enough to offset getting short-changed on the
morning drive, according to some AM owners.
Read the full story at the URL below:
(SOURCE: RADIOWORLD [USA] April 2022)
https://tinyurl.com/3r4dt2vy
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10
RadioUser June 2022
What’s new in the world of radio
TONGA ERUPTION MADE WAVES IN
EARTH’S IONOSPHERE: The volcanic eruption
of the South Pacific Ocean’s Hunga Tonga–
Hunga Ha‘apai, in January 2022, unleashed
a colossal amount of energy—equivalent to
around 4–18 megatons of TNT, according to
a preliminary estimate by NASA scientists.
The underwater volcano’s explosion triggered
15-meter-high tsunami waves that battered
the islands of Tonga, causing widespread
destruction and at least three deaths. The blast
also extended upward—atmospheric waves
produced by the eruption rippled through the
ionosphere. To track the travelling ionospheric
disturbances (TIDs) as they propagated across
the planet, Themens et al. analysed data from a
network of more than 4,735 Global Navigation
Satellite System (GNSS) receivers. The team
detected two large-scale TIDs (LSTIDs)
generated from the eruption, with wavelengths
greater than 1,600 km (almost 1,000 miles).
One had an initial speed of about 950 meters
per second, which is nearly 3 times the speed
of sound at Earth’s surface and close to the
speed of sound in the ionosphere. The LSTIDs
exhibited strong directionality—the initial wave
was the dominant wave response at Hawaii to
the northeast, but it was barely detectable near
Australia and to the west […].
(SOURCE: Geophysical Research Letters | EoS)
https://tinyurl.com/2p8sdsk4
RADIO STATIONS MUST BE PROTECTED ON
SMART SPEAKERS, SAY MPS: A cross-party
group of parliamentarians has backed calls for
legislation to be introduced to guarantee access
to UK radio stations on digital platforms like
smart speakers in future. At a reception in the
House of Commons on Wednesday 27th April,
hosted by the All-Party Parliamentary Group
(APPG) on Commercial Radio, news teams from
across the UK joined MPs and Peers to discuss
the important role that they play in delivering
news to the 37 million listeners that tune in to
commercial radio every week. The event was
hosted by Andy Carter MP, Chair of the APPG
on Commercial Radio and former Managing
Director of GMG Radio. Attendees included Julia
Lopez MP, Minister for Media, Data and Digital
Infrastructure, Julian Knight MP, Chair of the
DCMS Select Committee, and Baroness Tina
Stowell, Chair of the Communications and Digital
Committee. Andy Carter MP highlighted a recent
report from the APPG on Commercial Radio,
The Future of Radio, which provided several
recommendations to the Government to secure
the future of the industry, including the need to
ensure prominence, access and availability of UK
radio services online […].
(SOURCE: RadioToday | BBC News)
https://tinyurl.com/yc36jmc8
TUNEIN REMOVES UK STATIONS FROM
ITS PLATFORM: TuneIn has begun to remove
some UK radio stations from its platform over
a court ruling about music licensing, including
non-music stations. In a recent change, the
obligation to confirm the licensing status of
individual stations now falls on TuneIn, under a
court order. This means a removal notification
has been sent to radio stations that are not on
a recent database provided by PRS and PPL.
Radio stations that do not require licenses from
PRS and PPL, such as speech stations, have
News
also been removed with no further explanation.
In an email to stations, TuneIn said: “In the light
of that court ruling, and out of an abundance of
caution, TuneIn has implemented procedures
to prohibit access from within the UK to any
broadcast simulcast or Internet-only stations
that have not been confirmed to be licensed by
PPL and PRS for Music in the UK.” TuneIn further
stated that it is working with representatives of
copyright owners to confirm the licensing status
of individual stations. Those stations for which
TuneIn has received confirmed licensed status
to transmit in the UK can be made available to
TuneIn users in the UK. TuneIn adds that if a
station owner believes that its station is fully
licensed, then the station owner should contact
Warner and Sony or their agents (e.g. PPL) so that
they can confirm for TuneIn the licensed status
of a station.
(SOURCE: 24 hours in radio with Wisebuddah |
eRadio with Broadcast Bionics)
https://tinyurl.com/3uyzdmz3
https://bionics.co.uk
UKRAINE & THE FALKLANDS: On the Invasion
of Ukraine, and the strength of Short Wave, check
out the Waters and Stanton Video Channel:
“We examine the possible advantages of short
wave communication when the established
communications systems are blown up.” –
Furthermore, regarding the Falklands War and
SW (1982), see the resource at Waters & Stanton:
“Ham Radio Operator hears the invasion new from
the Falklands.”
(SOURCE: Bob Houlston G4PVB).
www.tinyurl.com/2hefu29b
www.tinyurl.com/3yts56rd
For the latest news and product reviews, visit www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
June 2022 RadioUser
11
News
What’s new in the world of radio
SOFTWARE-DEFINED RADIOS SELECTED :
The U.S. Air Force has selected BAE Systems,
with support from FlexRadio, to provide
software-defined radios for its Airborne
High-Frequency Radio Modernization (AHFRM)
program. The contract, which has a value of
$176 million, provides a secure alternative
to satellite communication methods. “Our
airborne radios are scalable and designed
for open architecture applications, making
them a solution that’s ready for the Air Force’s
future needs,” said Dave Logan, vice president
and general manager of C4ISR Solutions at
BAE Systems. “The evolving capabilities of
threats in the modern battlefield call for an
extensible, modernized anti-jam solution, which
our product provides.” The AHFRM solution
maintains over-the-horizon communications
while defeating jamming from potential threats
in a drop-in compatible radio design that
maximizes FlexRadio’s commercial off-theshelf technology.
Its scalability, modularity, and capacity
provisions for future modernization needs
and adjacent operational requirements. BAE
Systems design manufacture, and supply
‘mission-critical’ communication systems
for the U.S. Department of Defense, allied
governments, and large defence aircraft
manufacturers.
The company has secure, battle-proven,
communications solutions installed on a broad
range of military airborne platforms. AHFRM
development will take place at BAE Systems’
state-of-the-art facility in Fort Wayne, Indiana,
USA.
(SOURCES: BAE: via Keith Rawlings)
keith@recelectronics.co.uk
I NTERNET ARCHIVE: Internet Archive is a
non-profit library of millions of free books,
movies, software, music, websites, and more.
Visit the link below, scroll down a little to
Internet Archive, enter the title of the resource
you are interested in e.g. HackSpace Magazine
exactly as I have shown; then select the radio
button ‘Search metadata’ or ‘Search text
contents’ then press ‘GO’. Toggle the F11 key
for a full screen view and try experimenting by
using the ‘Advanced Search’ option.
(SOURCE: Bob Houlston G4PVB)
https://archive.org
NEW ISSUE OF RAILS AND RADIO: BRARS
(the British Railways Amateur Radio Society)
is delighted to report that the first issue of
its new look Rails and Radio magazine was
very well received; the next issue (April 2022)
has now been published and posted to every
BRARS member. The April issue covers a
variety of topics including a tour of Bennerley
Viaduct (a prominent railway landmark that
survived a Zeppelin raid and railway closures
and is now a footpath and cycle path), a visit
to three model railway exhibitions, a look at
the front cover of the first Newsletter and the
start of preparations for the BRARS AGM later
this year. As usual, the publication contains
features on: President’s Viewpoint, Chairman’s
Chat, Secretary’s Scribblings, Membership
Secretary’s Topics, and Publicity and Social
Media Report.
The editorial team is now hard at work
preparing the July issue for publication. The
team can be contacted at the e-mail address
below. Membership of BRARS is open to
anyone interested in any aspect of amateur
radio (whether licensed or listener) and in
any aspect of railways (by which we mean
any rail transport including trams, miniature
railways, model railways and such like). For
more information about BRARS, please contact
the membership secretary, Richard Waterman
G4KRW, 170 Station Road, Mickleover, Derby,
DE3 9FJ.
(SOURCE: Ian Brothwell G4EAN)
membership@brars.info
editor@brars.info
www.BRARS.info
‘VERTICAL FREEDOM’: NATE, in collaboration
with Storybuilt Media, has created a featurelength documentary titled Vertical Freedom,
which highlights the professional and personal
lives of six communications infrastructure
workers in the United States. Throughout
the film, these cellular and broadcast tower
climbers share what compels and excites them
about their line of work. Plus, “how to overcome
everyday danger to connect us all.” Ky Nguyen
is just one of the climbers featured in the film.
He has worked with RIO Steel and Tower out of
Alvarado, Texas for the last 10 years.
After the ‘Great Recession’, Nguyen wanted to
move away from his job in construction and
— while he is skilled at his craft now — he was
initially hired onto the tower communication
service’s team with zero experience. “I started
as a climber and then just kept working my way
up,” he said. “Then I became foreman and began
project managing. I’m one of those types of
guys where, if you want it done a certain way,
you have to be with them, showing them, leading
by example – so I’m climbing every day.”
(SOURCE: RADIOWORLD Engineering Extra,
Smart Brief).
https://tinyurl.com/2wp7efsc
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12
RadioUser June 2022
News
What’s new in the world of radio
SHORT WAVE RADIO AUDIO ARCHIVE: The
The Shortwave Radio Audio Archive (SRAA) is a
collection of short wave radio recordings that
you can download or listen to as a podcast. The
collection grows every day and includes both
historic recordings and current recordings from
the short wave radio spectrum. The goal of this
site is for short wave radio enthusiasts to have
a place to store, archive and share their radio
recordings with the world.
(SOURCE: Shortwave Radio Audio Archive
| ICQ Amateur / Ham Radio Podcast [info@
icqpodcast.com])
https://shortwavearchive.com
HANDLEY PAGE VICTOR MEMORIES: Bob
Houlston writes, “The picture of the Handley
Page Victor, Cold War bomber, from David Smith
(RadioUser, April 2022: 20) brought back fond
memories for me. As a young boy, I was a pupil
at Mandeville Junior School, St Albans which
was just a half-mile or so from Handley Page
where they would test the engines of the Victor.
The noise was so extreme that all lessons had to
stop. Later, as a teenager, I joined the Air Training
Corps and went to RAF St Athan for a week where
the similar delta wing Avro Vulcan was maintained
and where the flight refuelling squadron was
based. You can see what is seemingly the fight
refuelling tube on the top of the Victor (RadioUser,
April 2022: 20) We cadets were invited to stand
on the flight deck of a stationary Vulcan and
experience the vibrations while the staff revved
up the engines...wicked! Seemingly, the Victor
had the wings high on the fuselage and the Vulcan
had the wings low on the fuselage.” Check out
this YouTube video: V Bombers - Vulcan, Victor &
Valiant - The Last British Bombers:
(SOURCE: Bob Houlston G4PVB, Volunteer
Correspondent)
www.tinyurl.com/2kurdhm6
RADIO 1 HAPPY AND RADIO 2 90S
LAUNCHING ON BBC SOUNDS: Twelve new
‘Back-to-Back-Sounds’ are launching on BBC
Sounds, including Radio 1 Happy and Radio 2
90s. They will be joined by The Reset, Amplified,
Total Rewind, Rap Unlocked, Artist Icons, PreParty, Pop Right Now, Charged Up, Soothing
Sleep and Radio 1 Anthems. Launching from
today and over the coming weeks, the twelve
different Back To Back Sounds are organised by
genre, artist, theme or occasion. They feature
the latest programmes from across BBC radio
stations interwoven with new commissions,
hosted by popular artists. At Radio 1 Happy,
Katie Thistleton guides listeners through hours
of mood-boosting music and topical themes,
bringing joy throughout the day. And Radio 2
90s will bring listeners a nostalgia-drenched
celebration of the best music and pop culture
from the 90s, featuring The Original with Fearne
Cotton as well as brand new shows including Alt
90s with Dermot O’Leary […]. Read the full news
story here:
(SOURCE: ,BBC | RadioToday)
https://tinyurl.com/2p88r6wh
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For the latest news and product reviews, visit www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
June 2022 RadioUser
13
Book Review
David Harris
mydogisfinn@gmail.com
On David Harris’s desk, this month
is a radio presenter’s autobiography,
which is also a sensitive treatment
of mental health, and social and
historical issues.
Justin Webb (b.1961) is a presenter for
the BBC Radio 4 Today programme. He
joined the BBC as a graduate trainee
in 1984 and worked as a foreign
correspondent in Europe and the
USA. This book is an autobiography
covering the first 18 years of his life. It
is also a meditation on mental illness,
safeguarding children and growing up in a
dysfunctional family.
Justin was born to Gloria Crocombe
who was a single parent. His natural
father, with whom Gloria had a brief
affair, was the BBC newsreader, Peter
Woods (1930 -1995) who took no part in
his upbringing. Justin’s grandfather was
Leonard Crocombe, the first editor of the
Radio Times (from 1923 to 1926).
The book is roughly divided into two
parts – up to 11 years when the author
lived with his mother and step-father in
Bath, and 11 -18 when he attends a Quaker
boarding school.
In 1964, Justin’s mother married
Charles, an accountant with severe
mental health issues. Charles had a
personality disorder and heard voices.
However, he was treated with medication
and managed to remain at work.
Justin relates his step-father’s
obsession with the security of his garage:
New garage doors were frequently
replaced at considerable expense and
were secured with enormous padlocks.
He also tried to kill himself by overdosing.
His mother came from an upper-class
background and was also a troubled
person. Justin describes her search for
meaning in life, in which she embraced
many of the fashionable cults of the
sixties and seventies such as Maoism,
Hippiedom, Quakerism and Marxism.
She also worked to promote Amnesty
International and the CND.
Justin found solace in his early life with
“Justin was an only
child and he enjoyed
listening to Radio 1
and also to Radio 4”
Leaping over the
Barriers of Loneliness
The Gift of a Radio. My Childhood
and other Trainwrecks
Justin Webb. 2022.
Doubleday.
246 pp, Hbk. £16.99.
ISBN 9780857527721
www.penguin.co.uk
his radio, an ITT Tiny Super KB. This radio
was launched in 1971 and offered Long
Wave, Medium Wave and FM. It is still well
regarded and has been offered on eBay
recently for around £20.
https://tinyurl.com/238wnz4v
The author states that, “Radio connects
as nothing else does. It leaps over the
barriers of loneliness” (p. 16). Justin was
an only child and he enjoyed listening
to Radio 1 and also to Radio 4, which
may have given him some idea about
a future career. The first 11 years of
Justin’s life seem relatively normal, given
his challenging domestic situation. He
went on coach trips with his mother and
enjoyed playing with his train set.
At the age of 11, his life changed
completely when he was sent away
to Sidcot Quaker boarding school in
Winscombe, Somerset.
He remains there until he is 18
and completed his A levels. Justin’s
description of life at Sidcot reminded
me of Charles Dickens’ novel, Nicholas
Nickleby, in which Nicholas is sent to
Dotheboys Hall in Yorkshire. This is a
school where unwanted children were
sent and ill-treated by the owner.
Justin experienced some comfort from
his radio and enjoyed listening to rock
music, especially Led Zeppelin, Black
Sabbath and Free. He describes the
‘Victorian’ conditions he lived in, especially
the poor food and the lack of safeguarding
of children in that era. He mentions that
the school had a Caving Club, in which
children could go off exploring caves and
potholes with no adult supervision. There
was also widespread bullying.
As Justin got older he became part of
the hierarchy in the closed society that
is a boarding school. Justin is modest
about his academic achievements but he
passes 3 “A” Levels which enables him
to get a place at the London School of
Economics (LSE). He was encouraged
to write by his mother and also may have
inherited journalism skills from both his
natural father and grandfather.
He grew up reading The Guardian; his
stepfather, who died in 1980, received two
copies every day.
The book ends with an account of a
gap year spent working in a factory, a
budget bus trip to Greece which nearly
ended in tragedy with a fatal crash and his
acceptance at the LSE.
Throughout this book, Justin makes
some valuable remarks about mental
illness and the need to safeguard children.
He writes of the 1970s as a period of
constant industrial strife, shortages and
general squalor.
This is at odds with my own memories
of this period, which I then saw as one of
greater opportunities, tremendous music
and liberalisation of what had been a very
repressive country.
Maybe Justin will want to write the
next volume of his autobiography soon –
perhaps covering his years at the LSE and
the first 20 years of his career at the BBC.
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14
RadioUser June 2022
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Regular Columns:
Aerials Now (Keith Rawlings) ....................................... 01/53; 02/54; 03/24; 04/60; 05/56; 06/56;
07/52; 08/54; 09/60; 10/60; 11/26; 12/34
Air Shows (David Smith) ..............................................................................08/23; 09/22; 10/11;
Airband News (David Smith) ......................................... 01/30; 02/30; 03/28; 04/38; 05/30; 06/30;
07/30; 08/20; 09/20; 10/20; 11/30; 12/42
Book Review (David Harris)......................................................01/18; 03/42; 04/14; 05/14; 06/14;
07/14; 08/18; 09/18;10/12; 11/15; 12/18
Digital Radio (Kevin Ryan) ............................................ 01/56; 02/57; 03/49; 04/47; 05/34; 06/44;
07/44; 08/42; 09/43; 10/41; 11/44; 12/44
Emerging Issues in Radio (Chrissy Brand) .01/20; 02/20; 03/20; 04/53; 05/10; 06/16; 07/16; 08/14;
09/14; 10/34; 11/34; 12/14
European Private Short Wave Stations ........................... 02/28; 03/23; 04/13; 05/17; 06/23; 07/12;
(Stig Hartvig Nielsen) ..............................................................08/22; 09/27; 10/53; 11/43; 12/29
International Radio Scene | ........................................... 01/44; 02/46; 03/16; 04/50; 05/22; 06/47;
New Media and Internet Radio ....................................... 07/48; 08/46; 09/24; 10/22; 11/20; 12/20
Maritime Matters (Robert Connolly) .............................. 01/50; 02/50; 03/60; 04/34; 05/18; 06/60;
07/60; 08/60; 09/49; 10/56; 11/60; 12/60
Publications and Resources ......................................................................... 09/12; 10/59; 11/25
Push-to-Talk | Two-Way Radio Today (Tim Kirby) ..................................04/16; 08/57; 10/28; 12/56
Radio in History (Scott Caldwell) ..............................................01/48; 02/24; 03/38; 04/40; 05/46;
07/20; 08/50; 09/40; 10/54; 11/52; 12/52
Scanning Scene | Scanning Scene Extra (see below) (Tim Kirby) .......................................... 02/60
Signals from Space (Tim Kirby) ...................................... 01/38; 03/54; 05/42; 07/56; 09/56; 11/56
TV and Radio – Past and Present .................................. 01/60; 02/38; 03/30; 04/28; 05/49; 06/51;
(Keith Hamer & Garry Smith) ......................................... 07/41; 08/39; 09/37; 10/38; 11/48; 12/48
Commissioned Features:
A Remarkable Feline Operator (David Smith) ....................................................................... 10/26
A Year in the Life of the BBC (Tony Smith) .......................................................................... 12/24
Amateur Radio Distance-Learning in the UK (Steve Hartley) ................................................. 05/26
Broadcasting and the Media in Afghanistan (Martín Butera)................................................. 11/16
Contemporary Brazilian Radio............................................................................................ 01/14
Education and Radio in Brazil (Martín Butera) ..................................................................... 05/60
Emergency Communications at Sea (John Periam & Geoffrey Lee) ...................................... 07/36
Fading (Part 1) (Nils Schiffhauer) ...................................................................................... 07/24
Fading (Part 2) (Nils Schiffhauer) ...................................................................................... 08/24
HMS Collingwood (Keith Rawlings) ................................................................................... 12/30
Hobby Radio in Emergencies (Peter Hyams) ....................................................................... 03/34
Low-Power Long-Range Radio (Daimon Tilley) .................................................................... 01/24
Medium Wave DXing (Scott Caldwell) ................................................................................ 06/20
Meteorological Radio: Resources and Techniques (Ed.)....................................................... 10/45
Noise Cancellations: A Beginners’ Guide (Graham Somerville) ............................................. 09/28
Oliver Lodge (Ed.) ............................................................................................................. 06/34
PanAm Global Radio (Mark Allen) ...................................................................................... 08/34
Portishead Radio Aeronautical Service (Larry Bennett) ........................................................ 01/41
PPE: Observatório Nacional, Brasil (Martín Butera).............................................................. 10/14
Radio Astronomy for Amateurs (Andrew Thomas) ..............................................................02/34
Radio Cardiff (Richard Nosworthy) ....................................................................................09/34
Raiders, Jed Sets, Gibson Girls, and Biscuit Tins (Tony Smith) .............................................05/38
RAJAR: Measuring Radio Audiences (David Harris) .............................................................02/12
Reception Reports & QDLs in the Age of Remote SDRs (Stig Hartvig Nielsen) ....................... 03/58;
Scanning Memories (Anne Reed) .......................................................................................06/27
The dependable ‘Angry-9’: Workhorse of the Special Forces (Tony Smith)..............................09/46
The Wonder of the Transistor (Geoffrey Evans) ...................................................................02/42
Time Measurement and Radio (David Reynolds)..................................................................01/34
Ultra-Light DXing (Clint Gouveia) .......................................................................................11/38
Waves and the Virus (Part 1) (Ed.) ...................................................................................... 03/44
Waves and the Virus (Part 2) (Ed.) ...................................................................................... 04/56
Other Contributions
A Dedication to Air band (Rick King) ..................................................................................03/12
Annual Listening Handbooks & Frequency Guides (David Harris) ..........................................02/14
Book Review Extra (Robert Connolly) .................................................................................11/14
Book Review Extra (Tim Kirby) ...........................................................................................03/27
Competition: Bhi 5W Amplified In-Line Module ....................................................................12/39
Competition: Inrico T-310 ..................................................................................................10/31
Feedback and Corrections ............................................................................ 05/59; 08/12; 09/53
From Black Cats to Carrier Sleuths (Chris Smolinski) .............................................................3/11
Going VLF with the Reuter RLA (Ed.) ..................................................................................08/28
Inspiring Radio Reading and Radio Books (David Harris) .....................................................12/59
PskovNDB: A Visual Tool for NDB DXers (Ed.) .....................................................................04/10
Radio Officers: A Window in Time (Scott Caldwell & Robert Connolly) ..................................05/16
Scanning Scene Extra: Amateur Radio (Tim Kirby) ...............................................................02/60
UK Airband Frequency Guide (UKAFG) 2021 (Ed.) ................................................................02/49
Where Radio and Space Intersect (Ed.) ..............................................................................03/52
Reviews/ Projects:
A Long Wave Receiver for BBC Radio 4 (Roger Thomas) ......................................................04/43
ATS-20 SI4732 Receiver (Ed.) ............................................................................................12/40
Belka DX HF Receiver (Clint Gouveia) .................................................................................06/24
bhi 5W Amplified In-Line Module (Ed.) ...............................................................................12/38
ELAD FDM-S3 Direct Sampling Wideband Receiver (Clint Gouveia) .......................................04/20
Icom IC-M94DE (Robert Connolly) .....................................................................................09/54
Inrico T-310 (Tim Kirby) .....................................................................................................10/28
Moonraker Mini1300 Antenna Analyser (Keith Rawlings) ....................................................05/56
Moonraker X1-HF Vertical Antenna (Ed.) ............................................................................12/12
RFinder B-1 Dual Band DMR 4G/LTE Transceiver (Tim Kirby) ................................................06/40
Sandstrøm Internet Bluetooth DAB Radio (Kevin Ryan) ........................................................06/44
Tecsun H-501x Deluxe Short Wave Radio and Audio Player (Chrissy Brand) ...........................12/14
Tecsun PL-330 (Chrissy Brand) .........................................................................................05/10
Telestar DIRA M 6i (Kevin Ryan) .........................................................................................12/44
Vine Antennas AS-OCF-404-HP (Keith Rawlings) ................................................................06/56
Order at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/store/bookshop or call 01778 395161
June 2022 RadioUser
15
Feature
BAS
Alan Pennington
alan.pennington1@ntlworld.com
M
idwinter’s Day in Antarctica
(Tuesday 21st June 2022)
sees the biggest celebration
of the year at British Antarctic
Survey (BAS) research bases in the British
Antarctic Territory (Fig. 1). It is bigger than
even Christmas Day. For the staff left overwintering there, it is a day to look forward to
and prepare for in the middle of their cold
winter isolation.
At the main BAS base at Rothera on
Adelaide Island south of the Antarctic
Circle (Fig. 2), the Sun will not appear
above the mountains for many weeks; it
will not rise at all between 14th and 28th
June. Cherished Midwinter’s Day traditions
include the exchange of homemade gifts,
the base commanders preparing breakfast,
and later a multi-course feast. Some of the
traditional entertainment includes watching John Carpenter’s 1982 horror film, The
Thing, set on Antarctic bases.
And a ritual that continues, alongside
modern-day communications, is listening to the BBC World Service’s annual
Antarctic Midwinter Broadcast on short
wave, produced especially for the BAS. The
broadcast is just half an hour in length but
packed with recorded messages from families of overwintering BAS staff members
at those bases still manned at this time. A
record chosen by each base is played, plus
there are messages from celebrities (including Sir David Attenborough in 2021).
Since 2016, the programme has been
hosted by Welsh singer and DJ Cerys
Matthews (Fig. 3) and produced by Martin
Redfern for Boffin Media.
Select Audience
and Global Reach
The Midwinter Broadcast’s primary audience totalled just 35 in 2021. These were
the staff at BAS research bases at Rothera
(Adelaide Island, Fig. 2) and King Edward
Point and Bird Island (South Georgia).
Until 2017, the audience also included around 16 ‘over-winterers’ at the most
southerly base, Halley Research Station on
the Brunt Ice Shelf. However, this is now
unmanned in winter because of a crack in
the ice shelf the base is sat upon.
The short wave audience is boosted
manyfold by SWLs and DXers around
the world who eagerly await this short
and unique broadcast each year, which
is likened to eavesdropping on a private
party!
1
Calling the
Antarctic
Alan Pennington goes far South and takes a look at the
history, target audience and practicalities of the BBC
World Service’s annual Antarctic Midwinter Broadcast,
which will, once again, be transmitted later this month.
The BAS has confirmed to me that there
will be a Midwinter Broadcast again this
year. However, the short wave frequencies
are only confirmed a few days before the
21st of June each year.
Four shortwave frequencies were used
for last year’s broadcast, which was aired
at 2130-2200 UTC on 21st June: 6035
kHz (via Dhabbaya UAE), 6170kHz (via
Ascension Island), 7305, and 9505kHz
(both via Woofferton, UK). These frequencies had been tested a week before to
check suitability for reception in Antarctica.
In 2021 the BBC also repeated shorter editions of the programme on some World
Service streams, and on DAB in the UK. The
programme was even plugged as one of
‘Today’s Choices’ in the Radio Times!
The frequencies for the upcoming 2022
broadcast will be publicised online once
known, including on the British DX Club’s
Facebook page and in the diary on their
website:
http://bdxc.org.uk/diary.html
Exploring the Backstory
Following the annual BBC Antarctic
Midwinter Broadcast last year, I wondered in
what year the BBC broadcasts to Antarctica
had started. Jerry Berg’s excellent book
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16
RadioUser June 2022
Feature
BAS
2
BBC PHOTO
BBC
Fig. 1: A map of the British Antarctic Territory,
showing the British Antarctic Survey bases.
Fig. 2: The BAS Rothera research station.
Fig. 3: Cerys Matthews, who has presented the
Midwinter Broadcast annually, since 2016.
Fig. 4: The Radio Times cover of 18th May 1958:
Sir Vivian Fuchs - Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic
Expedition (CTAE). Fig. 5: The Bermuda Reporter
dated Jan 19th, 1963: “A BBC Highlight in the
Antarctic” Fig. 6: Klaus Dodds’s book is a good
introduction to many aspects of Antarctica.
Broadcasting on the Short Waves 1945 to
Today states (under the entry for 1956),
“The BBC broadcast a special weekly
program, Calling the Antarctic, for the men
of the Commonwealth Trans-Antarctic
Expedition (CTAE), the first successful
overland crossing of the continent.”
Preparations for the CTAE had begun in
1955 and were led by the British explorer Dr
Vivian Fuchs (Fig. 4).
The team were to cross the continent
by land via the South Pole – the first time
this had been done since Amundsen’s and
Scott’s expeditions of 1911 and 1912.
The Fuchs party left Shackleton Base in
the Antarctic summer, on 24th November
1957, successfully reaching Scott base 100
days later on 2nd March 1958: Fuchs was
knighted soon after.
Moreover, the BBC Year Book for
1959 declares that: “With the whole
of the British party, Dr. Fuchs listened
clearly to the Christmas Eve edition of
‘Calling the Antarctic’, which included the
Duke of Edinburgh’s message”. A BBC
correspondent also went on the expedition.
The first reference to a BBC broadcast to
Antarctica in the World Radio TV Handbook
(WRTH, just titled World Radio Handbook
then) appeared in the 1957 edition:
“SERVICE TO ANTARCTIC
22.15-22.45 (Tues, fortnightly); 31,
3
25 mb (meter band); 16.15-16.45 (Wed,
fortnightly); 13 mb”.
In the following year’s World Radio
Handbook (1958), it was listed as weekly
on Tuesdays, as follows:
SCE. TO ANTARCTIC; 22.00-22.30
(Tues.); 31, 19 mb.
Special Programming
The ‘Calling the Antarctic’ broadcasts
sometimes included comedy from home:
Humphrey Carpenter’s biography of Spike
Milligan tells us about preparation for a
Goons programme:
“For the first time, the scripts were vetted
before recording, The edition for Christmas
Eve 1956 was to be made ‘with the TransAntarctic Expedition in mind’: it was being
carried by the BBC’s General Overseas
Service.” – Special editions of the Navy
Lark radio comedy were broadcast too: “…
Calling the Antarctic, recorded on Dec. 4,
1962, and broadcast on Dec. 25, 1962. This
4
was a special Christmas Overseas Service
Broadcast for their ‘frozen friends’ in the
Antarctic, the 85 members of the British
Antarctic Survey serving on seven bases
along the Antarctic Peninsula … ”.
Moreover, an episode of The Men
from the Ministry comedy show was
also included in the 1962 broadcast, and
another Navy Lark special for the BBC
Antarctic Service was transmitted on 25th
December 1965.
Familiar Turns of Phrase
The British Antarctic Survey (BAS) is the
UK’s national polar research institute.
It was known as the Falkland Islands
Dependencies Survey (FIDS) until 1962.
Elizabeth William’s blog, Life in Antarctica,
was written after the discovery of a box of
papers left by her late father, George Lewis,
who worked with FIDS. It confirms that
the BBC’s Antarctic Programme started
in 1955 and includes this about the BBC’s
short wave broadcast:
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June 2022 RadioUser
17
Feature
BERMUDA RECORDER
“‘Calling the Antarctic’ was a programme,
started in 1955, recorded by the BBC for
those members of the Falkland Islands
Dependency Survey who, like my father,
were overwintering in the Antarctic.
“Personal messages from family
members were broadcast to a different
man each week, as part of the weekly
programme, providing a brief sound of
home at a time when the Sun did not
rise, and the ships could not bring mail.
In itself, the carefully-organised pile of
correspondence which I found between
my grandmother and various members
of the BBC was a poignant testimony of
how important this contact was for those
at home; for three months, arrangements
were made for Dad’s family to meet
in London to record their two-minute
message.
“A script was sent in advance, annotated
and returned; news had to be carefully
chosen, and brevity was essential. Even so,
it is noticeable that what everyone tried to
preserve were the familiar turns of phrase,
which would make this carefully-regulated
communication personal. In another pile
of letters, I found my dad’s response. When
his turn had come to receive a broadcast,
he had been unable to hear through static
and interruptions in Spanish from South
America: ‘All we can do is to record it and
play it back again and again each time
picking out a bit more.’ The painstaking
way in which he tried to recover his
message underlines the enormity of the
gulf that separated these men from home.”
https://tinyurl.com/44cr6jku
A Weekly Highlight
I also found an article – strangely enough,
in the Bermuda Reporter newspaper –
dated January 19th, 1963 (Fig. 5). I suspect
it may have been extracted from the BBC’s
London Calling magazine.
Whilst members of the BAS in
Antarctica in 2022 now have other means
of contact with home (e-mail, video
chats, and Royal Mail in the summer), this
article underlined the lengths staff used
to go, to try hearing Calling the Antarctic
and other BBC General Overseas Service
programmes on the short waves:
“For us at Fossil Bluff, the highlight
of the week was the BBC programme
Calling the Antarctic. This heartfelt ‘thankyou’ came to the BBC not long ago from
Clifford Pearce, who last year was carrying
out meteorological observations as a
member of the British Antarctic Survey
(formerly known as the Falkland Islands
Dependencies Survey – or more familiarly,
the FIDS). Ever since 1955, the BBC has
been transmitting a weekly programme
from April to September throughout
the dark months of the Antarctic winter,
especially for the scientists, technicians
and others during tours of duty with the
Survey.
“Mr Pearce not only wrote, but came
along to the studios at Bush House in the
Strand, headquarters of the BBC External
Services, to broadcast a vivid account –
in the regular General Overseas Service
programme ‘Shortwave Listeners’
Corner’ – of the conditions in which he
and his colleagues listened to this special
programme for the Antarctic, and some of
the General Overseas Service programmes,
which are heard by listeners all around the
world”.
Pedal-Driven Radio
At Fossil Bluff, on the eastern coast of
Alexander Island, Clifford Pearce, with his
colleague Brian Taylor, a geologist, and
John Smith, formed the advance party
of 14 members of the parent base at
Stonington Island 200 miles to the north.
Living in a one-roomed hut for eight and a
half months – with no sight of the Sun for
12 weeks – Clifford Pearce admitted that
they did feel, “a bit cut off”.
The diesel engine that powered
the radio set was used primarily for
transmitting weather messages to
Stonington Island. It broke down very early
on, so they used a pedal generator. Finding
that foot pedalling was “rather like riding
a bicycle whilst trying to listen to a Mozart
symphony”, they moved the machine from
the floor to a table and pedalled by hand.
Even so, 10 to 15 minutes pedalling at a
time was quite hard enough work, and
they became very discriminating about the
programmes they tried to receive.
They tuned in once a day, Mr Pearce
said, to the News and Commentary in the
BBC General Overseas Service, and the
Listeners’ Choice record programme was
another regular programme they liked to
hear. But there was no question of ever
missing Calling the Antarctic […].
A Breath of Home Air
“Every Tuesday evening”, said Mr Pearce,
“the three of us would move the paraffin
lamps over to the radio corner, and one of
us would stand at the generator and pedal
away. The other two would each hold a
solitary headphone to his ear. For the next
30 minutes, a breath of home air would
5
enter the hut – talks on home news or news
about the various expeditions in Antarctica,
records and personal messages recorded
by our parents and relatives. “You can
imagine how pleased we were to hear the
voices of our folks coming 9,000 miles to
us from Britain.”
He was sure that many members of the
British Antarctic Survey would join him in
thanking the BBC for mounting this special
programme for them. Mr Pearce is one of
many hundreds of men to whom over the
years this programme has bought voices
from home while they have been carrying
out their important work in the isolated
and hard conditions of the Antarctic: on
their return, many of them call Bush House
to express their warm thanks to the BBC,
and the producer Inez Brown.
The programme is enjoyed by other
listeners too. The whalers often tune into
it, and so do the members of scientific
expeditions from other countries.
A WRTH Record
Returning to the World Radio Handbooks
on my shelves at home here, in the 1961
edition I find there was still a weekly
Tuesday Antarctica service. But two years
later, in the 1963 edition, there was no
listing of an Antarctic service. Nor in any of
the other 1960s WRTHs, until 1969, which
did offer this entry:
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18
RadioUser June 2022
Feature
OUP
6
Antarctica Sce.; 22.15-22.45; First Tues
of month; 9510,11830.
In the 1969 WRTH, and throughout
the 1970s editions of the handbook,
Antarctica was shown, along with Atlantic
Islands, as a target area in the BBC WS
short wave schedule. But even this disappeared in the 1980 edition. And there was
no separate Antarctica service listed after
the 1969 edition as far as I can see.
Maybe a RadioUser reader has a record in their logbook of BBC broadcasts
to Antarctica during the 1980s or 1990s,
either every week or through an annual broadcast, as now? I should also add
that Radio Australia aired a programme
towards its Antarctic bases with a very
similar name to the BBC broadcast: ABC’s
Calling Antarctica, broadcast until the
1980s, included messages and recordings
from relatives, much like the BBC’s Calling
the Antarctic did.
The Present Day Situation
Moving forward to the present, I tried to
establish when the first annual Antarctic
Midwinter BBC Broadcast had taken place.
I first remember one in June 2009. In
Glenn Hauser’s DX Listening Digest (June
23rd, 2010)) comments from the Radio
Netherlands Media Network blog are
quoted, including this from Kai Ludwig:
“At least on 21 June 2000 the programme
went out on the already established slot
2130-2200 UTC, via Skelton on 7325 kHz
and via Rampisham on 9915 plus 11680
kHz”. So the annual broadcasts had begun
before the year 2000, maybe without many
DXers or SWLs noticing?
http://www.w4uvh.net/dxld1025.txt
The 2021 programme, as well as the
other annual Midwinter Broadcasts dating
back to 2015, can still be heard online:
https://tinyurl.com/yrweupun
Last year’s broadcast also featured in
BBC World Service’s Over to You listener
feedback show. I recorded a comment for
‘Over to You’, but only a part of it, asking
when the broadcast had started, went
on air. Martin Redfern, the producer of
the Midwinter Broadcast, said that 1955
was the year when BBC broadcasts to
Antarctica had started. However, he did
not state in which year the current annual
midwinter shows had begun. When asked
how the BAS ‘over-winterers’ down in
Antarctica listened to the broadcast he
said: “it is a bit like candles at Christmas:
we’ve got electric lights now, but we still
light candles. They’ve got internet … but
they still love to listen to it on short wave”.
The Midwinter celebration down there
was also described as “bigger than
Christmas Day”. Martin went on to say
that, when he took over producing the
programme in 2007, it was thought of as “a
little bit of favour that we did for the British
Antarctic Survey and not of much interest
to anybody else, but since then it’s grown
and grown”. This edition of BBC WS’s Over
to You is also still available online to listen
to at:
https://tinyurl.com/yu4um57c
DXing Antarctica
In recent years, Thomas Witherspoon
has encouraged DXers to share their
recordings of each annual June 21st
Midwinter Broadcast in his blog The
SWLing Post. For example, off-air
recordings of the 2016 broadcast from
around the globe are here:
https://tinyurl.com/3kd6wk43
More recordings, back to 2013, are
on Thomas’s website The Shortwave
Radio Audio Archive – just search for
“Antarctica”:
https://shortwavearchive.com
So, on June 21st this year do remember
to tune into the Midwinter’s Day Broadcast
on short wave and think of the British
Antarctic staff who will listen most
attentively at their remote bases in
the cold Antarctic winter. For more
background information about Antarctica,
take a look at the short book in Fig. 6.
[Alan Pennington edits a column in the
BDXC’s magazine, Communication and has
written features for the WRTH - Ed.].
CELEBRATING THE CENTENARY OF THE
TRANSATLANTIC TESTS: The early 1920s saw
the dawn of international amateur radio. A series
of significant milestones led over some five years
from no amateur transmission ever having been
heard on another continent, to intercontinental twoway communications becoming commonplace.
The RSGB will commemorate these historic events
by encouraging everyone to get on the air to make
QSOs – focusing on December 2021 and December
2022. Full details of how you can participate will
be published on the RSGB website. The RSGB has
also released a video celebrating the Centenary of
the 1921 Transatlantic Tests. The Radio Society
of Great Britain and the ARRL have long been
celebrating the centenary of the Transatlantic
Tests. A YouTube video highlights the fantastic
exhibition put on by the National Heritage Centre in
Saltcoats, the 1921 message re-enactment by the
Kilmarnock and Loudoun Amateur Radio Club, and
the 160m Transatlantic QSO Party.
(SOURCE: RSGB | ICQ Amateur / Ham Radio
Podcast [info@icqpodcast.com])
https://tinyurl.com/3kd6wk43
https://tinyurl.com/5va9cv7z
HBA LAUNCHES PODCAST PLATFORM: The
Hospital Broadcasting Association (HBA) has
launched its podcast platform to help its member
stations share their podcasts easier. The new HBA
Podcast Network uses the Captivate platform to
share podcasts from HBA Member stations across
all major platform providers. HBA Member stations
had to previously sign up to their own provider,
in some cases for a substantial fee, but the cost
of the HBA platform is covered by the station’s
membership fee. Liam Heffernan, HBA’s Digital
Team Leader who is behind the project, said: “The
HBA exists to support the health and wellbeing of
broadcasters across the UK. In recent years, as
the audio landscape has evolved and people listen
to content in more ways, hospital radio stations
have experienced unprecedented challenges. Our
members are constantly balancing their ambition
against the financial and administrative barriers
that come with being a local charity. The HBA
Podcast Network is the first network of its kind in
the world, specifically designed to remove these
barriers. Our members can now launch and run
their podcasts at no cost, with all the ongoing
expertise and support they need to create amazing
content. The response we’ve had so far has been
fantastic, and - as the network grows - we hope it
will completely transform the future of health and
wellbeing broadcasting.”
(SOURCE: HBA | RadioToday)
https://tinyurl.com/4v4b9cn4
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June 2022 RadioUser
19
Airband News
DAVID SMITH
1
David Smith
dj.daviator@btinternet.com
S
ince the start of the Ukraine invasion,
the options to overfly Europe have
become increasingly complicated,
especially for aircraft transiting between Western Europe the Middle East and
Asia. With winter behind us and Covid restrictions easing, there is now a major upturn in
traffic throughout Europe. However, the ongoing closure of Ukrainian airspace is having
a drastic effect on traffic flows across the
region, especially in airspace south-east of
Ukraine, where traffic levels have significantly increased.
To the west, re-routes across Poland, together with a huge increase in military traffic,
are vastly escalating ATC workloads. This
is coupled with a dispute at Warsaw Area
Control Centre over pay cuts, staff shortages
and revised working contracts. If an agreement is not reached soon, hundreds of flights
will have to be re-routed out of Polish airspace and into neighbouring states, chiefly
Germany, which may not be able to handle all
the extra traffic without severe restrictions
on its own capacity.
As if this weren’t enough, some of the airspace above France is undergoing a major
ATC upgrade, which will result in a 50% de-
Airspace Risks
and Traffic Jams
David Smith assesses the effects on European air
traffic of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, spots
surveillance aircraft monitoring the conflict, reports on
Prestwick and RAF Northolt and profiles Warton ATC.
crease in capacity, slowly returning to normal
by the end of July. Taking all these factors
into account, there are likely to be unprecedented bottlenecks in European airspace.
The screenshot (Fig. 1) is from ADS-B
Exchange. It shows commercial aircraft
keeping well clear of Ukrainian airspace and
reveals the standard electronic surveillance
track along the Romania-Moldova border.
A patrolling B-52 can be seen at the bottom
right.
New Airspace Risks
There have been several incidents in recent
weeks involving spillover effects from the
Ukraine war. These have put aircraft at risk
in nearby Flight Information Regions (busy,
open airspace with no navigation warnings).
These have included undetected military
drone incursions in NATO member airspace
as well as extensive GPS interference for aircraft operating across different regions of
Europe.
On 12 March, a large military drone malfunctioned and left the war zone. It flew undetected through the airspace of Romania
and Hungary, before entering Croatia and
crash landing on the outskirts of the capital, Zagreb. A further incident occurred on
14 March: a surveillance drone had briefly
entered Polish airspace before being shot
down by the Ukrainian military as it re-entered their own.
Around the same time came news that a
Russian surveillance drone had been discovered crashed in a northern Romanian village.
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20
RadioUser June 2022
Airband News
Fig. 1: Southeastern European airspace in May
2022.
Furthermore, in four regions near Ukraine,
since February, GPS interference has significantly increased. This includes instances of
jamming and ‘spoofing’; the latter meaning
deliberately introducing errors into the signal
so that GPS receivers become inaccurate or
erroneous. Erroneous GPS signals can lead
to the false triggering of Ground Proximity
Warning System alerts, inaccurately displayed information, loss of ADS-B, faults
with wind shear and terrain warnings, and
failure of aircraft systems that rely on satnav
for reference.
A complete loss of GPS is immediately noticeable and leads to issues navigating, or carrying out operations that require
Required Navigation Performance, especially RNAV approaches. The areas involved
are Kaliningrad, the Baltic Sea, and neighbouring states; Eastern Finland; The Black
Sea (a portion of which is currently part of a
major air corridor between the Middle East
and Europe); the Eastern Mediterranean near
Cyprus, Turkey, Lebanon, Syria, and Israel.
Scotland’s Prestwick Airport
and the War in Ukraine
Prestwick is proving an important refuelling stopover for US and Canadian military
aircraft en route to Poland with troops and
weapons. In addition, two Canadian C-130J
Hercules have been based at Prestwick
transporting aid destined for Ukraine.
American Christian charity Samaritan’s
Purse has also flown a DC-8 cargo aircraft in
and out of the airport every few days in support of the group’s emergency field hospital
and three medical clinics in Lviv and southern Ukraine.
Yet More Specialist Aircraft to
Monitor Ukraine
Six US Navy EA-18G Growlers have been
operating from Spangdahlem Airbase in
Germany to further bolster NATO’s eastern
flank. The Growlers are equipped for a variety of missions but specialise in electronic
warfare, using a suite of jamming sensors
to confuse enemy radars. Boeing advertises
its Growler as the world’s most advanced
airborne electronic attack aircraft. The deployed aircraft are from VAQ-134 Squadron.
RAF Northolt Now More
Accessible for Business Aircraft
The operating hours at Northolt will be extended from 1 June to include weekends.
Saturday 0800-1500hrs and Sunday 1200-
RAF and Contractors’ Airfield ATC Profiles No 14 Warton
ICAO Code: EGNO IATA Code: WRT
Frequencies
Warton Approach/Radar
Warton Talkdown
Warton Tower
Warton Fire (non-ATC)
ATIS
Warton Information
Navaids
Runways
(MHz)
232.200; 129.530
356.050; 129.730
130.085; 369.275; 121.800
121.600
(Fire vehicles attending aircraft on the ground).
121.730
ILS/DME CAT I Runway 25 | TACAN WTN 113.200
NDB WTN 337KHz
07 (2422 x 46m) | 25 (2422 x 46m).
NOTES (A-Z)
Aprons
Northern Apron; Military Training Apron; Southern Apron; Cargo Apron.
Circuit Procedures
All circuits are to the south of Runway 07/25 at 1000ft. Low-level circuits not below 500ft. Large
aircraft circuits will be at 1500 ft.
Flying Within 20nm of Warton Aerodrome
Pilots flying within 20nm, outside controlled airspace, may wish to maintain a listening watch only on
the Warton Radar frequency of 129,530MHz. If they choose to do this, they should select transponder
code 3660 to alert ATC to their presence. Pilots squawking 3660 will receive no ATC service. Aircraft
displaying the code are not expected to contact ATC under normal circumstances, but remain responsible for their own navigation, separation, and terrain clearance and are expected to remain clear of
controlled airspace at all times. When an aircraft ceases to maintain a listening watch or is no longer
flying within 20nm of Warton Aerodrome, the pilot will deselect transponder code 3660.
Helicopter Operations
Helicopters approach the runway in use and hover taxi to either Northern Apron or Cargo apron as
required.
Military Aerodrome Traffic Zone (MATZ)
Surface to 3,000ft. Non-standard rectangle, 20nm x 6nm, aligned with the runway headings 07 and
25 and off-set 1nm to the south.
Noise Abatement
Westerly departures should avoid overflying the town of Lytham. Easterly departures should avoid
remaining low or initiating a full power climb overhead the city of Preston.
Operational Hours
Winter: Mon - Thurs 0730 - 1900, Fri 0730 - 1700.
Summer: Mon - Thurs 0630 - 1800, Fri 0630 - 1600.
The aerodrome may operate outside the published hours to support business requirements.
Training
Priority will be given to test and experimental flying. Civil private pilot licence circuit training is not
permitted when fast jet traffic is on the visual circuit.
Visual Reference Points
Garstang Marina; M6 Junction 30/M61; M6 Junction 32/M55; Southport Pier.
Warnings
Large concentrations of birds are a year-round hazard to aircraft due to the aerodrome location on a
river estuary. Geese activity is present in the vicinity of the airfield from September to April. Skeins
range from 10 to 500 birds but can be in significantly larger numbers. Most activity takes place in
daylight but the birds may be present at any time of day or night up to 2,000ft. Rotary Hydraulic Arrestor Gear (RHAG) are used on Runway 07/25 to stop military aircraft from overrunning the runway
in the event of an emergency. The cables are recessed into the runway and are only raised for military
aircraft operations. The final approach tracks to Runway 25 (Warton) and Runway 28 (Blackpool)
converge at approximately 2.5nm from the Warton touchdown zone. Pilots should exercise caution
when visually identifying Warton. Restricted Area EG R312 and Blackpool Aerodrome Traffic Zone
are both located near the airfield. At weekends, when the airfield is closed, a 4m wide, illuminated
cross is located at the threshold to indicate the runway is closed. Siting on either 07/25 threshold is
dependent on wind conditions. This is a measure to help prevent pilots from misidentifying Warton
for Blackpool.
1900hrs. Northolt is the closest business
airport to Central London. It has an annual
cap of flight movements and, while this has
not been exceeded over the past two years,
there are occasional days when no airport
slots are available. The civilian ground han-
dling supplier is Universal Aviation UK. The
provider emphasises the fact that because it
is an active military airport, it is highly secure,
while also offering more privacy and less congestion than other airports in the region.
https://tinyurl.com/amn6n5tu
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June 2022 RadioUser
21
Airshows
Airshows
David Smith presents Part Two of our seasonal
RadioUser Guide to UK airshows, aerobatic displays
and flypasts, including themed events, special
days, and commemorative celebrations.
May 29th (Sunday)
WINGS & WHEELS: Stow Maries Aerodrome, Flambards Chase, Hackman’s
Lane, Purleigh, Essex CM3 6RJ. Aircraft
& vehicles at this recreated original
World War One aerodrome.
https://tinyurl.com/497yexra
Tel: 01245 429 134
June 2nd (Thursday)
QUEEN’S BIRTHDAY FLYPAST: The
Mall, London SW1A 2AX. Expected to include the Red Arrows.
June 2nd to 4th (Thursday to Saturday)
MIDLANDS AIR FESTIVAL: Ragley
Hall Estate, Alcester, Warwickshire B49
5NJ. ‘Nightfire’ is expected on Thursday
evening, a combination of a night-time
aerobatic air display with lighting & pyrotechnics & a ground-based hot air balloon glow.
Also expect vintage aircraft, aerobatics
& other air displays during the festival.
www.midlandsairfestival.com
June 2nd to 5th (Thursday to Sunday)
1940S WARTIME WEEKEND: Quorn
& Woodhouse Station, Leicestershire
LE12 8AG. Commemoration of wartime
England, with some flying expected.
www.gcrailway.co.uk/wartime
June 2nd to 5th (Thursday to Sunday)
ENGLISH RIVIERA AIRSHOW: Paignton, Torbay, Devon TQ4 6AG. Over the
bay along with supporting ground displays.
www.englishrivieraairshow.co.uk
June 5th (Sunday)
DUXFORD FLYING DAY ‘COMMEMORATING D-DAY’: Duxford, Cambs CB22
4QR. A themed display remembering
Duxford’s major role in fighter support
for Operation Overlord.
Tel: 01223 835 000
https://tinyurl.com/tp8n6s4t
June 5th (Sunday)
SHUTTLEWORTH JUBILEE FLYING
CIRCUS: Old Warden, Biggleswade,
Bedfordshire SG18 9EP. Recreating flying events of the 1930s.
Tel: 01767 627 927
www.shuttleworth.org/events/airshows
June 10th to 12th (Friday to Sunday)
GUERNSEY AIR RALLY: Guernsey,
Channel Islands. The 48th annual Rally.
This event is always well-attended by a
variety of aircraft.
Tel: 01481 265 267
https://tinyurl.com/2p9x3yws
June 11th (Saturday)
BLACKBUSHE 80TH ANNIVERSARY
FLY-IN: Blackbushe Airport, Camberley, Surrey GU17 9LQ. Not an airshow
as such, but many visiting aircraft are
expected; plus a static aircraft display &
activities for all the family.
June 11th (Saturday)
MILITARY WINGS & WHEELS DAY:
Bodmin Airfield, Bodmin, Cornwall PL30
4BU. Celebrating the 104th anniversary
of the RAF’s formation with military vehicles & re-enactors. No landing fees for
military marked aircraft for this event.
www.bodminairfield.com/events
June 11th (Saturday)
TEESSIDE AIRSHOW: Teesside International Airport, Darlington DL2 1LU.
www.teessideairshow.co.uk
June 12th (Sunday)
RAF COSFORD AIR SHOW: RAF Cosford, Shropshire TF11 8UP. A major display & the only RAF-organised show.
Tel: 01902 377 922
www.cosfordairshow.co.uk
June 16th to 18th (Thursday to Saturday)
AERO EXPO UK THE UK’S FESTIVAL OF AVIATION: Cotswold Airport,
Cirencester, Gloucestershire GL7 6BA.
Mainly a trade fair featuring many aircraft types, but the public can attend.
www.aeroexpo.co.uk
June 17th to 19th (Friday to Sunday)
WESTON PARK AIRSHOW INTERNATIONAL: Weston Park, Weston-UnderLizard, Shropshire TF11 8LE. Mostly
large flying scale models, but some visiting full-size aircraft.
www.airshowinternational.co.uk
June 18th (Saturday)
HEADCORN ARMED FORCES DAY:
Headcorn Airfield, Nr Maidstone, Kent
TN27 9HX. Apart from the usual airfield
activities which include flying training.
There will be some WWII aircraft, plus
ground displays.
www.headcornevents.co.uk/Events
June 18th (Saturday)
MILITARY EVENING DRIVE-IN AIRSHOW: Old Warden, Bedfordshire SG18
9EP. From trainers to fighters, from WWI
to WWII, in a relaxed sunset setting.
Tel: 01767 627 927
https://tinyurl.com/2p9y64j7
June 18th & 19th (Saturday & Sunday)
DUXFORD SUMMER AIRSHOW: Duxford, Cambs CB22 4QR. Will feature a
wide variety of aircraft, plus numerous
ground attractions & free access to the
museums.
https://tinyurl.com/4fy5d6kd
June 23rd to 26th (Thursday to Sunday)
FESTIVAL OF SPEED: Goodwood, West
Sussex PO18 0PH. Cars & motorcycles
but includes some air displays.
Tel: 01243 755 055
June 24th to 26th (Friday to Sunday)
BATTLE OF BRITAIN AIRSHOW: Headcorn Airfield, Nr Maidstone, Kent TN27
9HX. Displays by aircraft of the Battle of
Britain era, plus ground attractions for
all the family.
https://tinyurl.com/5xdkfpc8
June 25th (Saturday)
NATIONAL ARMED FORCES DAY:
North & South Bay Beach, Foreshore
Road, Scarborough, North Yorkshire
YO11 2ES. A major event with both air &
ground displays
Tel: 01723 232 323
https://tinyurl.com/4ezsmvb3
June 25th (Saturday)
ARMED FORCES DAY: Stow Maries
Aerodrome, Flambards Chase, Hackmans Lane, Purleigh, Essex CM3 6RJ.
Celebrating the armed forces with air &
ground displays.
June 25th (Saturday)
PLYMOUTH ARMED FORCES DAY:
Plymouth Hoe, Plymouth PL1 2PA. Air &
ground displays.
June 25th & 26th (Saturday & Sunday)
NORTHEAST LINCOLNSHIRE ARMED
FORCES DAY: Cleethorpes DN35 0AR.
Ground event with some air displays.
https://tinyurl.com/3s7u8bjs
June 25th & 26th (Saturday & Sunday)
WESTON AIR FESTIVAL & ARMED
FORCES WEEKEND: Weston Bay, Wes-
ton-Super-Mare, Somerset BS23 1BE.
Air displays & ground activities along
the seafront.
www.westonairfestival.com
July 2nd (Saturday)
BATTLE PROMS: Blenheim Palace,
Woodstock, Oxfordshire OX20 1UL. A
two-hour orchestral programme in a
stately home setting, plus Spitfire display & Red Devils Parachute Team.
July 2nd (Saturday)
TEIGNMOUTH AIRSHOW: Teignmouth, Devon TQ14 8BB. Participants to
be announced shortly.
Tel: 07464 750 735
www.teignmouthairshow.co.uk
July 2nd (Saturday)
WALLOP WINGS & WHEELS: Army
Flying Museum, Middle Wallop, Stockbridge, Hampshire SO20 8FB.
Tel: 01264 781 086
https://tinyurl.com/2p83yf3y
July 2nd & 3rd (Saturday & Sunday)
CAPEL MILITARY SHOW: Aldhurst
Farm, Capel, near Dorking, Surrey RH5
5HJ. Mainly an extensive ground show,
with some helicopter fly-ins.
Tel: 07926 925 547
www.capelmilitaryshow.com
July 2nd & 3rd (Saturday & Sunday)
WALES AIRSHOW: Swansea Bay,
Glamorgan SA1 9SA. A seafront display
with supporting ground events.
Tel: 01792 637 300
www.walesnationalairshow.com
July 3rd (Sunday)
FLY NAVY: Old Warden, Biggleswade,
Bedfordshire SG18 9EP. Features a variety of naval aircraft, including helicopters, plus ground attractions.
|Tel: 01767 627 927
www.shuttleworth.org/product/flynavy
July 3rd (Sunday)
LAA STRUT & BOLKOW FLY-IN: Popham Airfield, Coxford Down, Winchester
SO21 3BD. Mainly for Light Aircraft Association members but the general public are welcome too.
Tel: 01256 397 733
www.popham-airfield.co.uk
July 9th (Saturday)
BATTLE PROMS: Burghley House,
Stamford, Lincolnshire PE9 3JY. A twohour orchestral programme in a stately
home setting, which is expected to include a Red Devils parachute jump & a
Spitfire display.
https://tinyurl.com/44dhjax8
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22
RadioUser June 2022
Airshows
July 9th & 10th (Saturday & Sunday)
SOUTHPORT AIRSHOW: Southport
Seafront, Southport, Merseyside PR8
1RY. Not a free show but always has a
full programme of aerial performers.
www.visitsouthport.com/airshow
July 23rd & 24th (Saturday & Sunday)
VINTAGE AIRCRAFT CLUB FLY-IN:
Bodmin Airfield, Cornwall PL30 4BU.
Cornwall Flying Club is hosting a Fly-In
for the VAC (Vintage Aircraft Club).
www.bodminairfield.com/events
July 15th to 17th (Friday to Sunday)
ROYAL INTERNATIONAL AIR TATTOO: RAF Fairford, Gloucestershire GL7
4EG. Billed as the world’s biggest military airshow with around eight hours of
flying each day.
www.airtattoo.com
July 30th (Saturday)
BATTLE PROMS: Highclere Castle,
Newbury RG20 9RN. Another two-hour
orchestral programme in a stately home
setting, with appearances by the Red
Devils Parachute Display Team. plus a
Spitfire.
July 16th (Saturday)
BATTLE PROMS: Hatfield House, Hatfield, Hertfordshire AL9 5NQ. A two-hour
orchestral programme, plus a Red Devils
parachute jump & a Spitfire display.
July 30th & 31st (Saturday & Sunday)
OLD BUCKENHAM AIR SHOW: Old
Buckenham, Norfolk NR17 1PU. An excellent mix of warbirds & civilian aircraft,
classic & military vehicles, plus many
ground-based events.
www.oldbuckenhamairshow.com
July 16th (Saturday)
EVENING DRIVE-IN AIRSHOW: Old
Warden, Biggleswade, Bedfordshire
SG18 9EP. Celebrating the 90th anniversary of Old Warden aerodrome’s
opening.
Tel: 01767 627 927
https://tinyurl.com/yc423aac
July 16th (Saturday)
G-GEORGE DAY: Breighton Airfield,
Breighton, Selby, East Yorkshire YO8
6DS. Celebrating a Lancaster which flew
from here in 1942 & is now preserved
in Australia. This is a member event for
The Real Aeroplane Club at Breighton,
but memberships can be purchased on
the day.
www.realaero.com/bugle
July 16th & 17th (Saturday & Sunday)
WINGS & WHEELS: North Coates Airfield, Grimsby DN36 5XU. Organised by
North Coates Flying Club.
https://tinyurl.com/5n8fnn7j
July 18th to 22nd (Monday to Friday)
FARNBOROUGH INTERNATIONAL
AIRSHOW: Farnborough Aerodrome,
Hampshire GU14 6AZ. The first few days
are for trade only, but Friday has special
features for younger people & is open to
the public.
www.farnboroughairshow.com
July 23rd (Saturday)
DUXFORD FLYING DAY - THE AMERICANS: Duxford, Cambs CB22 4QR. A
themed display celebrating 25 years
since the American Air Museum at Duxford opened. It also commemorates the
history of the US Army Air Force fighter
unit once based here.
https://tinyurl.com/h6cvtsc9
July 30th to August 6th (Sat. to Sat.)
SWANAGE CARNIVAL WEEK: Swanage Bay, Dorset BH19 1LD. A week of
family activities, which usually includes
some air displays.
www.swanagecarnival.com
August 1st (Monday)
DUXFORD FLYING DAY - ‘YOUNG AVIATORS’: Duxford, Cambs CB22 4QR. A
themed show aimed at fostering children’s interest in aviation.
https://tinyurl.com/5cv4bkxh
August 5th to 14th (Friday to Sunday)
FALMOUTH WEEK: Falmouth Seafront
TR11 3DF.August. Mostly sailing & onshore events but there would normally
be some flying on Wednesday.
falmouthweek.co.uk
August 6th (Saturday)
EAST KIRKBY AIRSHOW: Lincolnshire
Aviation Heritage Centre, East Kirkby,
Lincs PE23 4DE. Three hours of flying,
plus Lancaster & Mosquito taxying.
https://tinyurl.com/3htc783r
01790 763207
August 7th (Sunday)
FAMILY AIRSHOW: Old Warden, Biggleswade, Bedfordshire SG18 9EP. Featuring a large number of resident & visiting aircraft.
https://tinyurl.com/5cbcr3s6
01767 627927
August 11th to 14th (Thursday to Sunday)
BRISTOL INTERNATIONAL BALLOON FIESTA: Ashton Court Estate,
Bristol BS8 3TQ. Billed as Europe’s largest ballooning event, a free family event
with huge numbers of balloons getting
airborne, as well as ‘night-glows’.
www.bristolballoonfiesta.co.uk
August 13th & 14th (Saturday & Sunday)
BLACKPOOL AIRSHOW: Tower Festival Headland, Blackpool, Lancashire FY1
4BJ. Free seaside airshow centred just
to the left of the Northern Victorian pier.
https://tinyurl.com/2zxsx5bk
August 13th & 14th (Saturday & Sunday)
COMBINED OPS: Headcorn Airfield,
Nr Maidstone, Kent TN27 9HX. Mainly
ground displays including static military
vehicles & re-enactment groups, but
there are usually some flying displays.
https://tinyurl.com/yu3kakxr
August 13th & 14th (Saturday & Sunday)
‘ECHOES OF HISTORY’ SHOW: Whitehouse Farm, The Living Memorial, Rettendon, Essex CM38DL.
Mainly classic & military vehicles plus
re-enactors. There has been flying in
the past.
usually some flying.
www.echoesofhistoryshow.com
August 13th to 15th (Saturday to Monday)
WHITBY REGATTA: Whitby, North Yorkshire. Red Arrows on the 13th, BBMF
Lancaster on the 13th & 14th.
www.whitbyregatta.co.uk
August 13th to 19th (Saturday to Friday)
CROMER CARNIVAL: Cromer, Norfolk
NR27 9HP. A week of events which includes the Red Arrows on the 17th.
www.cromercarnival.co.uk
August 14th (Sunday)
A TIME FOR ESSEX: Stow Maries Aerodrome, Flambirds Chase, Hackmans
Lane, Purleigh, Essex CM3 6RJ. Living
history groups, plus air displays.
https://tinyurl.com/3v9vzn4r
August 18th to 21st (Thursday to Sunday)
AIRBOURNE - EASTBOURNE INTERNATIONAL AIRSHOW: Eastbourne,
BN21 YT. Seafront air displays throughout, including the Red Arrows on all four
days.
www.visiteastbourne.com/airshow
01323 415415
August 20th (Saturday)
PROMS SPECTACULAR: Stansted
Park, Rowlands Castle, Hampshire PO9
6DX. Spitfire display & parachuting, followed by live concert & fireworks.
www.belevents.ticketsrv.co.uk/content
August 20th (Saturday)
SHUTTLEWORTH FLYING PROMS:
Old Warden, Biggleswade, Bedfordshire
SG18 9EP. An evening air display combined with classical music played by a
full symphony orchestra.
https://tinyurl.com/58keker6
01767 627927
August 21st (Sunday)
FOLKESTONE AIR DISPLAY: The Leas,
Folkestone. A seafront display which includes the Red Arrows.
https://tinyurl.com/bdhzk3w5
August 24th to 27th (Wed. to Saturday)
PORT OF DARTMOUTH ROYAL REGATTA: Dartmouth, Devon TQ6 9PS.
Mainly sailing of course but there should
be some air displays.
https://tinyurl.com/5e5p9xae
August 25th & 26th (Thursday & Friday)
CLACTON AIR SHOW: West Greensward, Clacton seafront, Clacton-onSea, Essex CO15 1NW. Free airshow
with a good mix of aircraft.
www.clactonairshow.com/2022
August 26th (Friday)
SIDMOUTH AIR DISPLAY: Sidmouth,
Devon EX2 4DR. Seafront show which includes the Red Arrows.
https://tinyurl.com/s7hzujrf
August 27th (Saturday)
DUXFORD FLYING EVENING: Duxford,
Cambs CB22 4QR. Featuring vintage &
classic aircraft.
https://tinyurl.com/5n76rwfw
August 27th (Saturday)
PROMS SPECTACULAR: Three Counties Showground, Malvern WR13 6NW.
Classical concert, parachuting & Spitfire
display.
https://tinyurl.com/msvb27xm
August 27th (Saturday)
WINGS & WHEELS: Henstridge Airfield,
Henstridge Marsh, Somerset BA8 0TA.
No air displays but many classic cars &
visiting aircraft. Visitors will be able to
inspect them.
www.wingsandwheelshenstridge.com
August 27th & 28th (Saturday & Sunday)
RHYL AIR SHOW: Rhyl, Denbighshire,
North Wales LL19 3AF. Free seafront airshow with military & civil aircraft.
August 28th (Sunday)
LITTLE GRANSDEN AIR & CAR
SHOW: Fullers Hill Farm, Little Gransden, Cambs SG19 3BP. Always a popular
family event with several hours of display flying.
www.littlegransdenairshow.co.uk
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23
Feature
ALL PICTURES: COURTESY VYACHESLAV ARGENBERG, EXCEPT FIG. 5: FACEBOOK
Martín Butera
martin_butera@yahoo.com.ar
S
ince Russia invaded Ukraine, on
24th February 2022, many of
us have heard more about the
Crimean Peninsula. Although the
peninsula has changed hands numerous times throughout history, it is true
that Crimea recently officially belonged to
Ukraine. However, in 2014, history repeated
itself, and now the peninsula is de facto in
the hands of Russia. It has now been annexed for eight years, and it is a considerable strategic location, owing to its direct
access to the Black Sea.
But Crimea is not just the base of the
Black Sea Fleet, nor are its relevant facilities
only those that can be found around the port
city of Sevastopol. With the annexation of
Crimea, Russia has also seized the former
USSR Deep Space Station, which currently
belongs to Ukraine. The base is identified by
the acronym NSFCTC (National Center for
Testing and Control of Space Facilities), located on the peninsula.
What many people do not know is that,
from that base, located on the quiet peninsula, the first interplanetary radiotelegraph
message in history was sent. Therefore,
this station has always been shrouded in
mysteries and secrets. The facility boasts a
deep space communication system of the
highest capacity, even on a global scale.
Listening is Believing
Russians are among the most ardent believers, it appears, in the existence of aliens, according to official data from a large survey
conducted by Glocalities, a company based
in the Netherlands, which became known
for its public opinion polls conducted
around the world. A great many Russians,
according to the data, support the idea
that humans should get in contact with advanced civilizations outside planet Earth.
Russia’s interest in communicating with
extraterrestrial civilizations is an idea that
has been developing since the 1960s. It began during the ‘Space Race’ of the Cold War
and it was from the deep space communications base, located in the city of Yevpatoria,
on the Crimean Peninsula, that experiments
began and curiosity was aroused. This curiosity continues to the present day.
The Yevpatoria Facility
and Project Pluto
Located approximately 145 km north
of Sevastopol, is the city of Yevpatoria
(Russian: Евпатория; Crimean Tatar:
1
Cosmic Calls
from the Crimea
Martín Butera outlines the History of an enigmatic Deep
Space Communications Center (DSCC) on the Crimean
Peninsula, from where the very first radio transmissions
to extra-terrestrial civilizations were sent.
Kezlev; Ukrainian: Євпаторія; Armenian:
Ԏlangelanges - Yevpatoria). The current
Deep Space Communications Center
(DSCC; Fig. 1) located there has belonged
to Ukraine, since 1996, following a decree
of the then President of Ukraine, Leonid
Kuchma (b. 1938).
However, in the Spring of 2014, this
location was invaded by the Russian
Aerospace Forces, belonging to the Russian
Armed Forces.
The DSCC has long been a scientific tool,
used by astronomers from the former Soviet
Union (SU). In this context, the best-known
part of it was probably the antenna complex,
known by the name of Pluto.
The Pluto Project was built in 1960 and
consists of at least three antennas (Figs. 2
and 3). Some of them are of the ADU-1000
design, a set of eight reflector antennas,
each one 16 meters in diameter. At the
North Station, two receiving antennas were
built and a transmitter was built 8.5 km
away, at the South Station. Each receiving
dish has a Cassegrain system (a type of
reflecting telescope that uses mirrors), plus
sub-reflectors mounted on quadra-pods in
front of the dishes.
At the time, the dishes of the antennas
were welded to the hulls of two submarines
and placed in the trusses of railway bridges.
The ADU-1000 antennas of the Pluto Project
are of considerable size. The Pluto complex
was the largest deep space communication
system in the world before the Goldstone
facility, built by the Americans in California
in 1966.
Significant Scientific
Achievements
The Yevpatoria complex contributed with
great very significantly and prominently to
science, in 1961, operators achieved one
of the first radar detections in the world
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24
RadioUser June 2022
Feature
Fig. 1: The gigantic dish of the RT-70 radio
telescope. Fig. 2: A view of the antenna field of
the Communications Centre.
Fig. 3: Two antennas of the Pluto Project, located
in the DSCC on the Crimean Peninsula.
Fig. 4: An image of the RT-70 radio telescope,
located at the DSCC. Fig. 5: A Russian banknote
showing the RT-70 radio telescope.
of the planet Venus. In June 1962, the
world’s first successful radar detection of
the planet Mercury was made. Similarly,
in February 1963, the facility carried out
the radar detection of the planet Mars with
excellent results. And last but not least, in
September/ October 1963 the antennas
carried out the first profitable radar
detection of Jupiter.
However, the installation became
internationally famous when, between 19th
and 24th November 1962, the words ‘MIR’,
‘LENIN’ and ‘SSSR’ (abbreviation in Latin:
Soviet Union), were sent in the direction of
the star HD131336 in the constellation of
Libra. These messages were known as The
Morse Message of 1962. They became the
first radio transmissions for extra-terrestrial
civilizations in the history of mankind.
The Pluto project antennas supported
all the Soviet space programs, until the
year 1978 when the Yevpatoria RT-70 radio
telescope was built. Subsequently, the Pluto
antennas became a backup system for the
RT-70. The latter is a radio telescope with a
built-in 70 m diameter dish antenna (Fig. 4).
It is known that there are also at least two
other, identical, radio telescopes in different
observatories located in countries of the
former Soviet Union.
Space Experiments
and Cosmic Calls
These radio telescopes are fully mobile
and are among the world’s largest of this
type. They all operate in the frequency
range from 5 to 300GHz. In addition to the
one located in Yevpatoria, the other two
are known to be located at the Ussuriysk
Astrophysical Observatory, in Russia, at the
coordinates 44 ° 00’57.9 “N 131 ° 45’25.13”
E; the other radio telescope is located at
the Suffa Observatory, in Uzbekistan, at
coordinates 39°37’27.05”N 68°26’51.63”E.
The RT-70 has an advantage compared
to other large radio telescopes: It includes
powerful transmitters, which allow
substantial Space-related experiments.
Some very powerful electromagnetic
beams can be aimed at Space with extreme
precision, and then the received signals
can be analysed. Therefore, the Yevpatoria
3
2
On one side of the bill appears the
Swallow’s Nest castle, which is located to
the west of the city of Yalta, and below it can
be seen an image from the radio telescope.
Today this banknote is one of the most
sought after by collectors.
Hiding Communications
3
RT-70 radio telescope is one of the few in
the world that can transmit messages to
extraterrestrial civilizations.
This has happened through projects
such as Cosmic Calls, Messages of the
Adolescent Age or FMEA.
For example, in 1999 the project Cosmic
Call was transmitted. The Message from the
Adolescent Age transmission followed. In
2003, Project Cosmic Call 2 ensued; and in
2008 the radio telescope was used for the
project called A Message from the Earth.
It is thought that an eventual reply may
reach Earth no earlier than the year 2049.
Geopolitics and Banknotes
A curious fact is that the RT-70 radio
telescope was represented on the Russian
commemorative 100-ruble (₽ 100)
banknote of the year 2015, ‘dedicated’
to the annexation of Crimea (Fig. 5). The
Central Bank of Russia has issued some 20
million ₽ 100 notes commemorating the
‘reunification’ of the Crimean Peninsula.
Returning to the facility, it is known that,
since 2014, in order to hide the true purpose
of using the Deep Space Communications
Centre, the Russian invaders took some
extreme measures, such as the demolition
of part of a village that was in the ‘dangerzone’ declared around the antenna. Another
very curious fact that emerges from this
investigation is that aircraft flights are
prohibited in the area, by means of an order
from the Russian Ministry of Transport (№
451, 2016). Finally – and although there is
no 100% reliable information to verify this
data – it appears that bursts of measurable
high-frequency (HF) radiation are emitted
from that area.
Anyone There? SETI Attempts
Of course, the Russians are not the only
ones who are obsessed with extraterrestrial
life. From at least the second half of the
last century onwards the Americans have
made various attempts to contact sentient
beings outside of this planet. For instance,
in the 1970s, NASA began sponsoring
the projects of the SETI Institute (SETI =
Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence).
These schemes search for electromagnetic
signals captured by different radio
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June 2022 RadioUser
25
Feature
4
telescopes. Enmeshed with those
activities, at least US$22 million have been
allocated to an Advanced Aerospace Threat
Identification Programme of the United
States Department of Defense.
This program aimed to investigate,
among other objectives, the existence of
extraterrestrial life.
The Arecibo Message
Last but by no means least, on 16th
November 1974, a message was sent
to the Star Cluster M13, at a distance of
25,000 lightyears. Notably, a number of
very prominent scientists, such as Frank
Drake (b. 1930) and Carl Sagan (19341996), participated in this launch. It was
coordinated from the Arecibo Radio
Telescope, located in the community of the
same name in Puerto Rico.
The message contained numbers from
1 to 10, information about human DNA, our
location in the solar system, and data on
humans on the planet.
Then, three years later, it was Voyager’s
Golden Record, where again scientist
Carl Sagan was part of a project that sent
a gramophone record to accompany
the Voyager space probes, which were
launched in 1977 and 1979. This message
contained sounds and images that portray
the diversity of life and culture on Earth,
as well as greetings in 55 languages and
music tracks from around the world.
The goal of the launch was to make the
existence of life on the planet known to
some form of intelligent life that could read,
understand, and decipher the disk.
Another curious message was the one
that contained music by the Beatles.
On 4th February 2008, NASA launched the
song Across The Universe by The Beatles
into space 430 lightyears away from the
Polaris star.
This transmission was made with a radio
telescope similar in construction to the
Yevpatoria RT-70 in Crimea.
It originated from the Deep Space
Communication Complex centre in Robledo,
near Madrid, Spain.
In Conclusion
Modern astronomy has developed into an
in-depth study of electromagnetic waves
and elementary particles emitted by space
bodies, as well as gravitational and electromagnetic fields. Many arrays of antennas, radar and radio telescopes provide
information about distant worlds, and it is
through them that we can observe events
that took place billions of years ago. With
the help of modern astronomical instruments, we can travel not only in space but
also in time.
Any ‘extraterrestrial’ life or existence undoubtedly presents deep philosophical, religious, technical and political issues. These
are so important to the future of our civilization that they merit extensive discussion.
It is known that Russia is strengthening
the potential of its military and space complex at the expense of the Ukrainian space
infrastructure facilities seized in Crimea.
What global threats and risks may arise
from it, for now, we do not know.
However – just to give you an idea
of the importance of the Deep Space
Communications Centre – suffice it to say
5
Sources
• Association of Reintegration of Crimea:
https://arc.construction
• Sven Grahn: Yevpatoria - as the USA saw it in
the 1960s
• Butrica, A.J. (1996): ‘NASA SP-4218: To See
the Unseen - A History of Planetary Radar
Astronomy’.
• CRAF (Comité De Frecuencias
De Radioastronomía): http://craf.jive.eu
• SETI Institute: https://www.seti.org
that in the entire history of deep space
study by mankind, only 19 attempts were
made (reported to the public) to send information about human existence to neighbouring star systems through radio telescopes, and 16 of them took place from
Yevpatoria.
[About the photographer: Vyacheslav
Argenberg, is an amateur photographer who
has been working in travel photography for
more than 30 years – Ed.].
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26
RadioUser June 2022
Rallies
Rallies & Events
All information published here reflects the situation up to and including 14th April 2022. Readers are advised to check carefully with the
organisers of any rally or event, before setting out for a visit. The Radio Enthusiast website will have updates, please check here regularly.
To get your event onto this list, please, e-mail full details as early as possible: wiessala@hotmail.com
20-22 May
DAYTON HAMVENTION: World’s largest
amateur radio show, now in its 70th year.
Big stands from all major manufacturers,
numerous smaller traders, a massive flea
market, world-class lectures. Strong ARRL
and RSGB presence, including bookstall.
https://hamvention.org
22 May
DUNSTABLE DOWNS RC NATIONAL
AMATEUR RADIO CAR BOOT SALE:
Stockwood Park, Luton. All the usual facilities will be there, further details on:
www.ddrcbootsale.org
5 June
SPALDING RADIO RALLY: Holbeach United Youth FC, Pennyhill Road, Holbeach,
Lincs PE12 &PR. Doors open at 10 am
(disabled 9.30 am), and entry is £3. (CBS |
CR | FM | RF | TS)
Graham, G8NWC: 07754 619 701
rally2022@sdars.org.uk
11 June
ROCHDALE & DISTRICT AMATEUR RADIO SOCIETY SUMMER RALLY: St Vincent de Paul’s, Caldershaw Road, off Edenfield Road (A680), Norden, Rochdale OL12
7QR. Doors will be open to the public at
10.15 am; disabled visitors at 10 am.
Robert M0NVQ: 0777 811 3333
m0nvq@outlook.com
12 June
MENDIPS RALLY: Farrington Gurney
Memorial Hall, Church Lane, Farrington
Gurney, BS39 6TY. Open 9.30 am (traders
7:30 am). Entrance £3 (FP). Indoor & Field
pitches. Tables: £8; outside £5.
Luke Kelly, 2E0VHV: 07870 168 197
mendipsrally@hotmail.com
12 June
SNADARC JUNCTION 28 RADIO RALLY:
Alfreton and District Amateur Radio Club,
South Normanton. Alfreton Leisure Centre, DE55 7BD. Tables still £10 and Admission£3. Everything is indoors with a meeting room, bar, refreshments and full Café
onsite. Opening at 10:15, traders will have
access from 08:00.
Alan Jones M0OLT: 01332 679913
secretary@snadarc.com
www.snadarc.com
18 June
BANGOR & DISTRICT ARS 53RD RALLY :
Ballygilbert Presbyterian Church, 376 Bel-
fast Road, Ballyrobert, Bangor BT19 1UH.
Doors open at 11.30 am.
Andrew, MI0OBR: 07980 846 272
19 June
EAST SUFFOLK WIRELESS REVIVAL
(IPSWICH RALLY): Kirton Recreation
Ground, Back Road, Kirton IP10 0PW (just
off the A14). Doors open at 9.30 am and
the entry fee for visitors is £2. Trade tables
are from £10. (BB | CBS | CR | FP | RSGB |
SIG | TS | GB4SWR HF station).
Kevin G8MXV: 07710 046 846
www.eswr.org.uk
24-26 June
HAM RADIO FRIEDRICHSHAFEN: Exhibitors & visitors from 52 countries, large flea
market with around 300 stalls.
https://tinyurl.com/2p8up2rc
25 June
GI-QRP CONVENTION: Tandragee Golf
Club, 11 Markethill Road, Tandragee,
Craigavon BT62 2ER. The venue has ample
parking and disabled access. Doors open
at 9 am. Presentations start at 10 am.
As well as this being the first-ever QRP
convention in GI, there will be an opportunity to work the GQRP Club callsign
GI5LOW for the first time in the week leading up to the Convention and the weekend of the Convention. The Convention is
being held in association with the GQRP
Club. (BA | CR | L | LB | RF | SIG | TS).
Philip MI0MSO: 078 4902 5760
r8.giqrp@gmail.com
26 June
NEWBURY RADIO RALLY: Newbury
Showground, Priors Court Road, Hermitage, Thatcham, Berks. RG18 9QZ. The is
organised and run by the Newbury And District Amateur Radio Society (NADARS).
https://www.nadars.org.uk/rally.asp
http://www.nadars.org.uk
3 July
BARFORD NORFOLK
ARC RADIO RALLY
www.norfolkamateurradio.org
3 July
CORNISH RAC RALLY: Penair School, St
Clement, Truro, Cornwall TR1 1TN. Doors
open at 10 am. Admission is £2. (BB | CR |
D TS | Local Club Stands).
Ken Tarry G0FIC 01209 821073
pendennis38@btinternet.com
www.gx4crc.com
17 July
MCMICHAEL AMATEUR RADIO RALLY
& CAR BOOT SALE : The McMichael Rally
begins at 09:30 am, with car boot setup
from 8:30 am. The location is: Reading
Rugby Club, Sonning Lane (B4446) Sonning, Berkshire RG4 6ST, NGR SU 753 747.
Admission: £3 per person. Car boot sale:
£10 per pitch, no booking required. No
dogs are allowed, except for assistance
dogs (CBS | FP | SIG).
https://mcmichaelrally.org.uk
rally@radarc.org
traders@radarc.org
24 July
FINNINGLEY ARS RALLY: Car-boot style
rally. Food bar. Near J2 M180, Doncaster.
www.g0ghk.com
31 July
CHIPPENHAM & DISTRICT ARS. WILTSHIRE RADIO RALLY, ELECTRONICS
FAIR & CAR BOOT: Kington Langley Village Hall and Playing Field, Kington Langley, Wiltshire SN15 5NJ. 9 am to 3 pm. Admission free. Traders Welcome (CA).
Brian, G6HUI
rally@chippenhamradio.club
https://wiltshirespc.org/wp/g3vre/rally
7 August
BATC CONVENTION FOR AMATEUR TV
2022 (CAT 22) PART 1: Midland Air Museum, Rowley Rd, Coventry CV3 4FR. CAT
22 will be a meet-up, show and tell, test
and fix-it, and Bring & Buy event, from 10
am to 4 pm. Full test facilities available for
5.6GHz/Portsdown/MiniTiouner/Ryde/
power amplifiers/preamps.
7 August
KING’S LYNN ARC 32ND GREAT EASTERN RADIO RALLY: Gaywood Community
Centre, Gayton Road, King’s Lynn PE30
4EL. Open 9 am (trade from 7 am). Admission £2.50. Outdoor pitch £8. Indoor £10
per table. (BB | CF | FP | TS).
rally.klarc@gmail.com
http://www.klarc.org.u
12-14 August
19TH INTERNATIONAL EME CONFERENCE (PRAGUE): Registrations open from
1 January 2022.
http://www.eme2020.cz
12 August
COCKENZIE & PORT SETON ARC 27TH
MINI-RALLY NIGHT: Community Centre,
Main Hall, Port Seton. 6 pm. Admission
is £2. Tables on a first-come-first-served
basis.
www.cpsarc.com
14 August
FLIGHT REFUELLING ARS HAMFEST:
Cobham Sports and Social Club Ground,
Merley, nr Wimborne, Dorset, BH21 3DA.
Talk in will be on S22. Open from 10 am to
6 pm; entry £4, includes car parking. No
dogs permitted except Guide dogs.
(L | TS | Indoor and Field Pitches).
Tony Baker G3PFM: 07743 475018
tbaker@tiscali.co.uk
www.frars.co.uk
21 August
RUGBY AMATEUR TRANSMITTING SOCIETY RADIO RALLY: Princethorpe College, Princethorpe, Rugby CV23 9PY. Open
10:00. Car boot sale.
Steve G8LYB: 07956 855816
rally@rugbyats.co.uk
www.rugbyats.co.uk
28 August
MILTON KEYNES ARS RALLY: The Irish
Centre, Manor Fields, Watling Street,
Bletchley, MK2 2HX (Opposite Dobbies
Garden Centre), which has excellent modern facilities (FP | CF | D). The entrance fee
is £3.00. Open to the public from 9:00 am.
Outdoor pitches and indoor tables.
Brendan G8IXK
rally@mkars.org.uk
www.mkars.org.uk
28 August
TORBAY ANNUAL COMMUNICATIONS
FAIR: Newton Abbot Racecourse Devon
TQ12 3AF. Doors open at 10 am, with disabled visitors gaining access at 9.30 am.
Indoor event (FP | BB | RSGB CF).
Pete, G4VTO: 01803 864 528
Mike, G1TUU: 01803 557 941.
rally@tars.org.uk
29 August (BANK HOLIDAY MONDAY)
HUNTINGDONSHIRE ARS ANNUAL
RALLY: Ernulf Academy, St Neots PE19
2SH. Gates open for Traders at 7 am and
the public at 9 am.
Indoor and outdoor stalls are available.
Talk-in on 145.550 MHz on GX0HSR.
(BB | CR | FP )
Malcolm, M0OLG
Tel: 01480 214282.
events@hunts-hams.co.uk
www.hunts-hams.co.uk
BA Buildathon BB Bring-and-Buy CBS Car Boot Sale CR Catering /Refreshments D Disabled visitors FM Flea Market FP Free Parking LB Licensed Bar L Lectures RF Raffle RSGB (RSGB) Book Stall RU/PW RadioUser/ PW in attendance SIG Special-Interest Groups TI Talk-In (Channel) TS Trade Stalls Wi-Fi (Free) Wi-Fi
Follow us on Facebook @radioenthusiasts and Twitter @REnthusiasts
June 2022 RadioUser
27
Feedback
Readers’ Feedback
The editor offers a selection of e-mails, letters and posts received from our readers.
One Happy Competition Winner
Colin was the lucky winner of our recent competition
for the Sangean ATS-909X2 world band radio. He got
in touch to say, “ Hi Georg, I have attached a photo of the
Sangean in use. Hopefully, it is OK. Have enjoyed using the
radio over the weekend. Regards, Colin.”
[Colin, I am very pleased that you are getting on with
the radio, and it is nice to see it in use. I think it is ideal
for DXpeditions, holidays, and so on. Thanks for the
photograph, and may the Sangean bring you many happy
years of use – Ed.].
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28
RadioUser June 2022
Feedback
Anne Reed 2E1GKY
From Anne Reed, 2E1GKY comes the following
correspondence: “I first became interested in radio
at a very early age of about ten when I used to visit my Grandfather who had a 1947 Cossor Model
470. This had a walnut veneer plywood cabinet and
cost £21-11-6d plus purchase tax!! I would watch
him with great interest tuning on the short, medium and long wave bands. My father had a Bush
DAC90 in a Bakelite brown case. My first purchase
was an Ultra Coronation Twin Model R786 made
in 1953 which was a very good radio but alas it got
broken in 1961 when moving to Cheltenham. On a
visit to the RSGB 1988 Vintage Show at the NEC,
I spotted one for sale, but it was nearly one hundred pounds, so I had to withdraw my interest. In
1961 I worked in the motor trade and had dealings
with radios and their parts for fitting and although
the radios only had the basic FM, MW and LW; this
helped a lot in my learning.
“My interest moved to short wave and I joined
the International Short Wave League (G.20126)
and I bought a Sony 2001D (which I still have and
would not part with it), also other Sony models
including the 7600 range. At one stage I bought
a Kenwood R5000 receiver and this was my first
introduction to Waters and Stanton. Jeff the director let me bring it back from the NEC to try out
and considering this particular model was almost
a thousand pounds then, I have always appreciated this. The Tandy shops were a magnet and I purchased various base and handheld scanners. My
favourite CB base transceiver was the York 869,
and this helped me on my way to transmitting practice I made a very good friend, Roger Provins, who
also became a radio amateur (G0RGJ) and helped
me with my learning. My main CB antenna was
a Delta Loop which looked like a sailing ship and
was just a bit noticeable. The heavy-duty brackets
to this day now support my 6-metre antenna.
“In March 1997 I decided to get cracking towards an Amateur Radio Licence and plucked up
the courage to sign on the very last Amateur Radio
course held at Gloscat in The Park, Cheltenham
from September to May which I found rather a long
slog but went every week. The tutor liked all board
work and would take up to 30 minutes to explain
certain circuits. About nine of us attended this
course and some at the back of me regularly fell
asleep! I prayed for some practical work as there
was an antenna on the roof but only one demo
the entire term!! I did have one go at the City and
Guilds Radio Amateur Examination but found it too
difficult. After a short gap, I decided action was
needed so I studied the RSGB Novice paperwork
and noticed it was more ‘hands-on’.
“ I decided to take the plunge and I wrote to the
Gloucester Amateur Radio Society I must say Brian
G4CIB’s letter was most welcoming and everyone including Vernon G0HTO gave me some marvellous help. I took the very last Gloscat Novice
Examination in a room all on my own and was
successful; since then I have continued to enjoy
my Amateur Radio Licence to the full. I have been
an RSGB member since 1985. I am now an active
Committee member of the Gloucester Amateur
Radio and Electronics Society (G4AYM), having
held the posts of Assistant Treasurer, Treasurer,
and Secretary, and now RSGB Examination
Secretary, for the club. I also enjoy operating from
a local hilltop on Bank Holiday Mondays when the
club does not meet.”
[Many thanks for your kind e-mail, Anne, there is
almost an entire article here; I shall hope to recruit
you for a contribution to RadioUser once again, in
the not-too-distant future – Ed.].
The Other Man’s Shack
The other images on these pages show the magnificent shack of RadioUser’s friend Mac in East
Lothian. He wrote in to say he’d just treated himself to the ICOM IC-705 transceiver and to express his thanks for bringing the Long, Medium
and Short Wave column back, as, indeed, have
many other readers.
https://tinyurl.com/yurbznry
[Great to hear from you again, Mac, I think I may
have ‘shack-envy’ now! And thanks to Scott
Caldwell! – It is good to know the new column is
being well received. Ed.].
Desmond Walsh, 2E1GKY
Desmond Walsh has an interesting query: “I would
like to bring to readers’ attention the existence
of a band of pulse signals heard usually around
10:00 to 20:00 GMT within the 11-metre broad-
cast band. I first noticed these signals as I heard
a ‘ticking’ sound like a clock (the old mechanical
analogue wind-up ones) across 25.8 to 26.1MHz
exactly. I say ‘exactly’, as the transmitted band is
rectangular across those frequencies with a rapid fall-off, just like a DRM transmission. How this
is achieved with a pulse- transmission is beyond
me, and I wonder if it is some form of OTHR (OverThe-Horizon radar)? The pulse rate is about 4 per
second, sounding like a ticking clock. Depending
on propagation at those frequencies, the signals
are heard regularly here in Cork (in the South of
Ireland ), and, at a weaker level, on the very useful
Twente SDR in the Netherlands. Has anyone any
idea just what this is and where it is being transmitted from? This is a mystery to me! I first heard
these signals in mid-March.”
(SOURCE: https://www.qrz.com/lookup;
Callsign: 2E1GKY, 3rd May 2022)
[Can anyone help with this enquiry, please? E-mails
to the editor please: wiessala@hotmail.com – Ed.].
Enter our competitions at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/competitions
June 2022 RadioUser
29
In the Editor’s Shack
Georg Wiessala
wiessala@hotmail.co.uk
I
have recently been able to obtain
a Bonito AntennaJet AAS-300DP
aerial splitter, courtesy of Clint
Gouveia, of the Oxford Short Wave
Blog and Dennis Walter, of the German
radio and aerials firm Bonito.
http://oxfordshortwaveblog.blogspot.com
https://www.bonito.net/hamradio/en
This clever device had long interested
me since I never manage to entirely
suppress interference when I connect two
radios to my aerials. Everything I have tried
so far amounted to ‘Heath-Robinson’ style
solutions, sadly. By contrast, this splitter,
according to Bonito, is frequently sold to
professional users.
Therefore, with some initial online
reviews also sounding positive, I was
gratified to have the opportunity to take a
look at this small but high-quality device,
distributed in the UK by ML&S Martin
Lynch and Sons.
The specifications of the AAS-300DP
are shown in Table 1.
Traditional and SDR
I figured that, in all likelihood, many of us now
have both a Software-Defined Receiver (SDR)
as well as a more traditional HF radio, so I
tried that scenario first. It worked flawlessly.
I hooked up my outdoor Wellbrook ALA
1530 loop to my AOR AR7030 and my
SDRplay RSP duo at the same time, I was
gratified to see how well this new little
shack-friend functioned.
If you have both radios on the same
frequency, you can get a good first
impression of signal strength from the
AOR; but it was good to be able to see
some more detail, as well as appraise the
wider environment of the station you are
listening to on the waterfall-display of the
SDR. My example was BBC Radio 4 on
MW (720kHz), which, for some reason,
is always a challenge to receive at my
location in the North West.
This worked well for hybrid receivers too,
such as the ATS-25 SI4731 Chip Radio or
the Malahit (RadioUser, February 2022: 5456; May 2022: 28-31), or any combination
of legacy, hybrid and SDR setups.
VLF to HF
Over a misty Lancashire weekend, I tried
a variety of aerials linked to the Bonito
AntennaJet AAS-300DP, among them two
special VLF ferrite bars; since the signal
splitter is specified from 9kHz, there was no
Bonito AntennaJet
AAS-300DP
The Bonito AntennaJet AAS-300DP is an active, dualpowered, lossless, RF signal splitter made by Bonito in
Germany. It arrived in the editor’s shack last week and
was used with diverse receiving equipment.
problem in observing, and comparing, signals
in the VLF range, from transmissions to
submarines to Standard Frequency and Time
Signal (SFTS) stations.
In this context, I used the Spectrum Lab
software suite to see signals. The SDRplay
Dual-Tuner RSPduo is specified to go
down to a mere 9kHz; so here I had a very
nifty setup to evaluate several VLF aerials,
routing them through the Bonito unit.
You may also wish to compare two
radios on, say, two different HF VOLMET
frequencies, as I did, or hook up two or
three scanners to catch all the action.
Or have the Cricket on (198kHz) on one
radio, and tune in occasionally, whilst
listening to one of Alan Roe’s Music
Programmes on Shortwave on another
receiver. I know some radios have dual
VFOs (like my AOR) - but, in life as in radio,
two are much more fun.
The Bonito AntennaJet
AAS-300DP In Operation
There are many ways to use and/ or test
two HF receivers at the same time; you
may (like me) want to do this just for fun,
engage in some serious frequency-drift
and signal-travel-time measuring, pursue a
spot of comparative signals analysis, or just
enjoy some close monitoring for a listening
contest, for example. In a device like this
– which will often be used by product
testers – it is of paramount importance, of
course, that the radios connected do not
in any way influence one another in any
way, to avoid interference.
That is its very raison d’être, as it were.
And that is achieved perfectly by the
AntennaJet, leading to an immediate
and substantial improvement in my
DXing experience. The photographs on
these pages are meant to give you some
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30
RadioUser June 2022
In the Editor’s Shack
• Input frequency range: 9kHz – 300MHz
(-1dB) (- 450MHz)
• Input connector / Impedance: BNC / 50
Ohms (DC-blocked max. 25V)
impression of what I did with this signal
splitter in the shack and how it may be
used. I feel certain that you can think of
many more user scenarios, and possible
radio experiments, in your own shacks;
with a device like this, your imagination is
the only limit.
My warm thanks go to Dennis Walter
at Bonito in Germany (Herzlichen Dank,
Dennis) and to YouTuber and RadioUser
contributor Clint Gouveia, of the Oxford
Short Wave Log, who has recently
reviewed the Bonito AntennaJet AAS300DP on YouTube.
https://tinyurl.com/5n7pb22e
The Bonito AntennaJet AAS-300DP is
available in the UK from ML&S, priced at
£259.95:
https://tinyurl.com/ycxukvtc
• ESD (Electro-static Discharge) input protection: 30KV; max. pulse power 350W
(8/20µs)
• Maximum allowable input power: 0dBm
• Insertion loss: max. 1.5dB typ.
• Output connectors / Impedance: BNC / 50
Ohm (DC-blocked max. 25V)
• Isolation between the outputs: 70dB typ.
<1MHz; 60dB typ. < 30MHz; 50dB typ.
<100MHz; 40dB typ. <300MHz
• Amplitude difference of the outputs: max.
0.5dB typ.
• IP3 Intercept-Point 3rd Order: +35dBm typ.
<10MHz; +20dBm typ. >100MHz.
Bonito - Dennis Walter
Tel: +49 (0)5052 6052 or 6053
dennis.office@bonito.net
Table 1: AntennaJet AAS-300DP: Specifications
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June 2022 RadioUser
31
www.moonr
Shop online
Check your email
Collect from store
THE ONLINE RADIO SUPERSTORE
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This multi-system adaptive digital trunking scanner supports
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Clips
Emerging Issues in Radio
CHRISSY BRAND.
Chrissy Brand
chrissyLB@hotmail.co.uk
R
adio stations in Ukraine have, inevitably, taken on a more vital
role than ever since the invasion
by President Putin. New stations
have taken to the airwaves and others have
changed format, while parts of the outside
world recommenced targeting the country
with their radio services.
The National Radio Company of Ukraine
and commercial stations had a key part
to play in the ongoing Russo-Ukraine
disputes, which have been worsening ever
since 2008 (Fig. 1).
It has been a challenge for stations
in war zones to stay on the air, due
to suffering massive bombing and
destruction. Many stations have lost staff,
who, understandably, fled Ukraine.
At the time of writing, Russia has not
taken over the Ukrainian broadcasting
network or any stations, which continue
to relay news and information about the
war from the perspective of the wronglyinvaded.
Until a time that Russia does take over
the radio network and starts to broadcast
its own propaganda, I would personally
question the point in international stations,
such as the BBC, REE, Vatican Radio and
others, increasing their transmissions to
Ukraine. Ukrainians can still receive news
from their domestic radio and TV stations,
plus social media and other parts of the
internet.
Radio In Ukraine
One of the most interesting developments
due to the war, radio wise, may well be
the Ukrainian station Kraina FM (Fig. 2).
This independent station broadcasts
from a makeshift office somewhere in the
Carpathian Mountains.
Writing in The New Yorker magazine,
Nicolas Niarchos (‘Ukraine’s Station of
National Resistance’, March 18th, 2022)
visited the station and wrote how Kraina
FM was instigated and operated by Roman
Davydov and Bogdan Bolkhovetsky,
both in their 40s. Once the station was
established, a representative from the
National Council of Television and Radio
Broadcasting in Ukraine requested that
they play a national broadcast. The Kraina
FM duo decided to continue with just their
own programming, Bogdan Bolkhovetsky
explaining how, ‘Everybody else switched
to the national station. It was a continuous
broadcast of just one programme on TV
1
War and Radio
in Ukraine
Chrissy Brand looks at how the ongoing war in
Ukraine has changed the radio landscape, in Ukraine
itself, neighbouring countries and the wider world.
stations and everywhere. I mean, you tune in
to any station and it is the same What’s the
point? Let’s have one which is different.”
They see Kraina FM as the ‘station of
national resistance’. Programme content
coordinates humanitarian logistics and
also includes aggressive humour against
Russia. This takes the form of patriotic
poetry and lesser-known features about
Ukrainians.
In March, France 24 reported how radio
station Lvivska Khvylya (Wave of Lviv)
changed its format of music programmes
to one of news once the war began. The
station was well prepared, being on a war
footing, like most of Ukraine, for many
years.
Damage to transmitter towers during
the current conflict has been an issue.
Technical Director, 31- year old Vasyl
Pakuch, stated, “Even if, God forbid, they
destroy a tower, we will climb a tree with an
antenna and we will still turn on the radio
wherever we are. It’s not a problem.”
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34
RadioUser June 2022
Emerging Issues in Radio
KRAINA FM
Fig. 1: Anti-war street art in Rome, created by @
laika1954. Fig. 2: Kraina FM, a station of national
resistance in the Carpathian Mountains.
Fig. 3: How many Ukrainians listen to short wave
broadcasts? Fig. 4: Radio Iperbole in Abruzzo:
Intelligent Italian discussion about the war.
Fig. 5: Capital Radio interviewing NUS
Presidential candidate, Radical.
Lvivska Khvylya has doubled its audience
figures, from what was 300,000 to 400,000
daily, before the war began. Between music
and entertainment, and news, the station
tries to make jokes about the situation, to
boost morale.
Euro News also covered this story,
quoting 27-year old journalist, Marta
Oliyarnyk, “The war affected our work a lot
because there is also a psychological factor
which, in the beginning, prevented us from
working The [military and civilian casualty]
figures terrify us, we experience them
personally, but we also try to give a lot of
positive information such as the human and
material losses of the enemy.”
In April, The Independent reported how an
internet radio station called Radio Ukraine,
based in Prague, was up and running. It
streams programmes for over 300,000
Ukrainian refugees who have arrived in the
Czech Republic.
I feel it could have been better named, as
there is already at least one Radio Ukraine,
and this could cause confusion. Each
radio station inevitably has its own agenda
and political angles, even if these tend to
be mostly the same in times of war. The
Prague-based Radio Ukraine is staffed by
ten people, some of whom fled Ukraine
recently and others who left the country
years ago. The editor-in-chief is former
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty journalist,
Natalia Churikova.
The Independent rounded up the
programme content that can be heard on
Radio Ukraine, “For 12 hours each weekday,
and 11 hours on weekends, Radio Ukraine
plays Ukrainian and western music while
presenting news of Ukraine and the Czech
Republic together with information for
refugees every 15 minutes. It includes
details about where they can get the
documents they need from local authorities,
how to get a job or medical treatment, or
how to find a place for children at schools.
Children can listen to Ukrainian fairy tales.”
A similar station was set up in Poland.
RMF Ukraina airs information for refugees,
in Ukrainian and English on FM (RadioUser,
Emerging Issues in Radio, May 2022: 3437).
2
MARKUS SPISKE ON UNSPLASH
3
In terms of issues, President Zelenskiy’s
ban on 11 opposition parties in late
March was widely reported by numerous
organisations, including DW, but not
always, arguably, in the most objective
manner possible.
http://krainafm.com.ua
https://tinyurl.com/4fncc8e5
https://tinyurl.com/38uwkxsk
https://tinyurl.com/2jhfn2b7
https://tinyurl.com/2p8dj3kb
https://tinyurl.com/bdshnbty
Broadcasts to Ukraine
It is surely a morale boost for Ukrainians to
know that most of the world is supporting
them in their struggle. However, the news
beamed in from outside will offer little
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June 2022 RadioUser
35
Emerging Issues in Radio
CHRISSY BRAND
more information than what is already
being consumed.
Sadly, potential audiences to
international broadcasts have been lost,
for at least the last generation, when
broadcasters left short wave.
Although the reasons for deserting
the short waves can be seen as valid,
the fundamental mistake was that most
broadcasters abandoned their language
service listeners. They could, and should,
have encouraged the loyal listenership
to follow the station from short wave to
online programming. But, in most cases,
this failed to happen.
Certain radio broadcasts aimed at
Ukraine have been reinstated or added to,
and even parts of the radio industry that
have long forgotten short wave have run
features explaining how short wave radio
seems to be making a comeback and can
be a useful tool.
The one big question is: who still owns
a short wave radio? Are Ukrainian people
gathering around community elders who
are the only ones who still possess this
once-dominant technology (Fig. 3)?
Those of us who, for the past 20
years, have urged broadcasters and
governments to retain a short wave
presence, even a skeleton one, take scant
consolation in being proven correct.
A Short-Wave Revival?
There have been some interesting
discussions on various radio and DX
forums around the world as to whether
the war has caused a realistic short wave
revival. Writing for Radio World, Keith
Perron and Daniel Robinson (Foreign
Correspondent for the Voice of America)
wrote an article, Why Reviving Shortwave is
a Non-Starter.
A decade ago, Keith was a familiar
voice on short wave with his Taiwanbased PCJ Media. He revived the Radio
Netherlands’ Happy Station Show and
relayed many other programmes on short
wave, including the Canadian-Ukrainian
programme, Ukrainian Roots Radio.
However, some interesting points are
raised in the piece, for instance, “Today,
short wave hobbyists assert that there
is great value in beaming short wave to
Russia where a Putin crackdown closed
independent media and pushed western
reporters out. But this is like claiming there
is a VHS revival, because a few VCRs may
still be floating around. At one time, there
may have been millions of short wave
radios across the region. But no longer,
4
gone are the days of people huddling
around radios.”
Another point feeds into the wider
debate of how public service media
should be funded, a debate which has
been covered here in RadioUser in recent
months.
For instance, the authors believe that
the BBC instigating broadcasts of four
hours a day of English on short wave to
Russia and Ukraine is a public relations
stunt, “aimed at blunting the drive to do
away with the license fee and show the
BBC to be still important in times of crisis.
In a familiar game in Washington, in times
of crisis, the U.S. Agency for Global Media
runs to Capitol Hill lobbying lawmakers to
increase its budget (over $800 million in
Financial Year 2022).”
https://tinyurl.com/2p88r6wh
Bo Thide, Emeritus Professor at the
Swedish Institute of Space Physics,
responding to the article, wrote that, “The
author does not seem to be aware of the
recent rapid development and availability
of software-defined radio (SDR) receivers.
You do not need the Internet to run an
SDR receiver. That’s the whole point! Just
connect a piece of wire as an antenna and
then you go!”
In another Radio World article, WRMI at
Heart of SW Broadcasts to Russia, Ukraine
(April 4th), James Careless interviewed
Jeff White of WRMI. Jeff said WRMI had
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RadioUser June 2022
Emerging Issues in Radio
CHRISSY BRAND
continue to maintain a highly useful Focus
on Ukraine list on their website. There are
nine different categories, with each one
containing numerous links. The categories
include radio broadcasts, streaming
websites, Kiwi SDRs, independent reports
from radio monitors around the world,
YouTube channels, and Facebook pages.
https://cidxclub.ca/ukraine-v2
One example of how the western world
is reporting on Ukraine can be seen in
Italian online broadcaster Radio Iperbole,
which translates into English as ‘Radio
Hyperbole’. The station began in May
2021, tackling a wide range of topics
with intelligent debates and a talk radio
format. Based at a technical college in the
mountain town of Sulmano, in Abruzzo, it
is hosted by environmentalist students,
and very much aims to be a community
radio station. The Ukraine war receives
regular coverage, through discussion
programmes each Tuesday and Thursday
at 1430 UTC. A poster (Fig. 4) states how
the station aims to reflect and understand
the conflict and build dialogue.
https://tinyurl.com/mr48chtc
In the UK, domestic radio has given
extensive coverage to the war, replacing
regular programmes as well as specialist
features, such as BBC Radio 4’s Letter
From Ukraine. Commercial radio upped its
news coverage too, for example, attending
protests against the war and interviewing
protestors (Fig. 5).
www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/series/m0015hx4
Russian Media
5
received listener reports and thank you
e-mails from Russia, Belarus and Ukraine,
as well as Poland, the Czech Republic,
Slovakia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Romania and
other parts of Eastern Europe. Jeff stated,
“The day after we resumed airing Ukrainian
Radio, we got a message on our Facebook
page saying: ‘Thank you, from Kharkiv.’ We
got a similar message from a listener in
Sumy, Ukraine.’
https://tinyurl.com/bdf36cw5
Meanwhile, medium wave has
continued to play a role, and presumably,
there are more radios in the war zones
equipped with medium wave than
there are with short wave. For example,
the Lithuanian relay of international
services (formerly known as Baltic Waves
International) carries programmes on
1386kHz.
These include an overnight relay of
Ukraine Radio’s domestic service (0000
to 0330 UTC). This is followed by NHK
World TV in English (from 0330 to 0350
UTC), Polskie Radio in Belarussian (0400
to 0500 UTC), and Ukrainian at 0500 UTC.
Polskie Radio in English can be heard for
an hour at 1200 UTC.
For details, see Ydun’s Medium Wave
Info (website post of April 6th).
https://mediumwave.info
Broadcasts About Ukraine
The Canadian International DX Club
Radio Sputnik was the replacement for
The Voice of Russia many years back.
Although mostly an online broadcaster,
its programmes are relayed on several
radio stations. These included some in the
USA, with KCXL in Missouri and WZHFAM in Washington DC receiving criticism
for continuing to air Radio Sputnik
programmes. Faultlines, with Jarmari
Thomas, pursued the pro-Kremlin line
about the invasion of Ukraine.
https://tinyurl.com/234zkhx6
Internet streams are useful for all, of
course, until blocked or banned. The
Russian state has tightly controlled what
is reported to its citizens. In the UK, I have
been unable to access Radio Sputnik
output online. RT (Russia Today), which
was on Freeview, has been banned from
broadcasting in the UK. The station
was pro-Russian although did air some
innovative programmes and debates not
seen elsewhere.
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June 2022 RadioUser
37
Locations
ALL PICTURES: DAVID REYNOLDS G3ZPF, EXCEPT FIG. 3: BOSHAM LIFE MAGAZINE
David Reynolds G3ZPF
g3zpf@raota.org
A
nyone who has been in the hobby
for a while is probably aware of the
role that Gerald Marcuse (G2NM)
played in the history of amateur
radio and in the creation of what would become the BBC World Service (BBCWS).
For those who are not, his biography is
available online at the first URL (below).
In addition to being a former President of
RSGB, and involved in founding RAOTA,
he was also Vice-President at the founding of IARU, as described online at the second website here:
https://bit.ly/3qgQo7N
https://bit.ly/3wt7wZ5
On page 18 of the biography, the author mentions that in the village of Bosham
(near Chichester) the churchyard had a teak
bench, with a plaque donated by RSGB and
RAOTA, and a sundial donated by his wife.
The bench was commissioned in 1962,
the year following Gerald’s death, and
presented to Bosham Council by John
Clarricoats (G6CL).
A Courtship Location …
In late 2018, Peter (G3RZP) mentioned to
me that John (G4GWJ) used to sit on the
bench while courting his wife but when
visiting the village a few weeks earlier he
was disappointed to find that, although
the sundial was still there, the bench
had been removed.
He was told that the bench had allegedly
been removed for refurbishment, but no one
seemed sure. John was concerned that it
might never be replaced. It seems that UK
authorities sometimes seem uninterested in
items of historical significance if they are related to technology.
Their local vicar manages several village
churches and had only recently been appointed. She was probably unaware of any
details, so I searched the web and came
across the Bosham Association.
Their chairman explained that The
Marcuse bench was actually outside the
churchyard wall. It is under the control of the
Parish Council and was removed because of
concerns over its condition.
He also said that it was replaced by a
hardwood bench incorporating the original
Marcuse plaque after the refurbishment of
the churchyard wall (Fig. 1).
I mentioned this to the RSGB who, along
with RAOTA, donated the cost of the replacement. To their credit, the local Council opted
for a custom-made replica of the original
1
The Marcuse
Memorial Bench &
Amberley Museum
David Reynolds G3ZPF, the President of the Radio
Amateurs Old Timers’ Association (RAOTA), remembers
a visit to two significant sites of UK radio history and
commemoration in the South of England.
which, as you can see in the photo, is a wellcrafted item and incorporates the plaque
from the original.
A Sit-In with History
In 2019, I received an invitation to a gathering at the new bench, organised by Joan
Langhorne, the Church archivist. Bosham
(pronounced ‘Bozzam’ by the locals) is
about 200miles from my QTH so Carol & I
decided to travel down the day before and
return the day after. This gave us chance
to visit Amberley Museum, where there is a
replica of G2NM’s shack among all the other
exhibits (see below).
David Marcuse (Gerald’s son) was there,
along with John and Julie Butcher, G4GWJ,
and G4HKZ. Elaine Richards and her OM
were there too, along with David Fry (G4JSZ)
who is working on a book about Gerald
Marcuse, in collaboration with the Marcuse
family. The working title is Gerald Marcuse,
Pioneer of Radio. Seated at the right is David
(G4JSZ), with David Marcuse next to him.
Behind them, there is Elaine (G4LFM), the
former editor of RadCom. Alan (G4HCO)
2
3
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38
RadioUser June 2022
Locations
4
Fig. 1: The (replacement) Marcuse Bench, with
the (original) commemorative plaque.
Fig. 2: The official gathering for the inauguration
of the replacement bench. Fig. 3: The sundial
from the top. Fig. 4: Some of the exhibits in
Amberley Museum.
is standing immediately to the right of the
bench. Julie (G4HKZ) is to the left of the
bench, with her OM John (G4GWJ) behind
her. Others present included residents who
belong to the Friends of Bosham association,
some of whom remembered Gerald Marcuse
from their childhood (Fig. 2).
A Leg and a Sundial
David Marcuse and David Fry (G4JSZ)
both gave a short speech and then Joan
Langhorne surprised everyone by presenting
John & Julie with the remnant of a leg from
the original bench, which she noticed had
been discarded in a flowerbed, as a memento of their ‘courting’ days. Julie said that she
would place it on display at their home, and
visitors would be asked if they would ‘like to
see her wooden leg’.
In addition to the bench, there is also a
sundial on the church grounds mentioning
some radio ‘firsts’ by Gerald Marcuse. The
only photo I had ever seen was the top-down
view (Fig. 3) which appears in several places
on the web and it looked to be quite large,
but the diameter turned out to be rather less
than I expected.
Amberley Museum
The next day the weather was fine, so Carol
& I decided to visit Amberley Museum before
starting our journey home. Quite by chance,
I bumped into David Marcuse, standing next
to the replica of his father’s shack.
The Amberley Museum (Amberley
Museum & Heritage Centre) has a huge collection of vintage radios in a large building,
plus plenty of other non-radio exhibits to
keep the whole family occupied (e.g. Fig. 4).
The rotary-dial telephones in the telecoms
hall confused one young lad who did not realise you had to rotate the dial and not just
push the numbers, as did the presence of letters when told he could not text.
There is an amateur radio station in
the museum, using the callsign GB2CPM,
full details of which can be found on
their QRZ.COM page.
For those who find walking any distance
hard work, there is a narrow-gauge railway
and a tram service to transport you from one
part of the site to another. The on-site café
serves good food at reasonable prices.
https://www.amberleymuseum.co.uk
Therefore, if you are ever in the Chichester
area I can thoroughly recommend visiting
the Amberley Museum
Last, but certainly not least, Bosham village is very pretty, with several thatched cottages and even a library in a phone box.
https://tinyurl.com/yems9wpe
[N.B.: A version of this article was previously
published in OT News, the quarterly magazine of RAOTA, the Radio Amateur Old Timers’
Association. Contrary to popular belief you do
not need to have been licensed for 25 years
to join. You do not even have to hold an amateur transmitting license. Although having a
healthy interest in the history of our hobby
RAOTA members use modern technology and
operating modes. Full details can be found on
the website at www.raota.org – Ed.].
COMMUNITY RADIO MANAGERS FORM OXDAB: A group of community radio managers has
teamed up to bid for the upcoming Oxford smallscale DAB multiplex licence. They are Martin Steers
from NLive, Dean Kavanagh from Switch Radio,
and Barry Clack, director of Witney Radio. Martin is
a co-founder of the UK Community Radio Network,
representing community radio stations. Dean has
operated a trial small scale multiplex for the last
seven years, has recently won a permanent service,
and is also co-director of a software development
company building solutions for small-scale DAB.
And Barry Clack runs a community radio station
covering West Oxfordshire. He commented: “Good
local radio is important, Oxford needs a good local
service, something which has been lacking since
the demise of FOX FM in 2009. When Fox joined a
large, networked, radio group, that local identity
which listeners enjoyed was lost and never returned.
This identity and structure is what has made Witney
Radio a success and will become welcomed by the
residents of Oxford when we bring back not just
local radio, but a collection of local radio stations,
broadcast by local people, back to the city of Oxford.” OxDAB stated that it is interested in hearing
from prospective local broadcasters who wish to
begin broadcasting on DAB.
(SOURCE: RadioToday | OxDAB)
https://tinyurl.com/2p88r6wh
10 YEARS OF SERVICE: UK-based company
Streamerr [sic] is marking its 10th year of providing
a service to radio stations. The business says
it has almost 50,000 users and created close to
61,000 distinct radio stations. Previously known
as SHOUTca.st, Streamerr was founded in 2013 to
provide online streaming servers and streaming
solutions. The first major milestone – reaching
100 active users – was achieved in February 2014,
and just over a year later this grew to 1000. Over
the past 10 years, the brand has expanded and
experienced significant growth; it now offers
broadcasting solutions including stream-hosting,
web-hosting, reseller-hosting, video-streaming,
and support for those launching stations. Aaron
Gregory, Streamerr’s Company Director, said: “We
often hear that ‘radio is dead’, but as we approach
our 10th birthday, we are solid proof that the saying
is far from the truth! It is true, however, that radio has
been neglected for a long time, and we are incredibly
proud to be giving it the attention and accessibility
it deserves. With a true passion for the industry,
we are excited to be researching and developing
solutions that bring radio into the 21st century and
demonstrate the power of this diverse medium.”
(SOURCE: RadioToday | Streamerr)
https://tinyurl.com/2p8dkwtw
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June 2022 RadioUser
39
Digital Radio
Kevin Ryan
kevin@radio-digital.co.uk
H
D Radio – or IBOC (In-BandOn-Channel) as it was once
known – is the digital radio
standard created for the
USA. It has spread to Canada and Mexico
too and has been adopted by some
countries in the rest of the Americas.
I have a good understanding of how
HD Radio works but I would like to
hear it first-hand.
It is not currently possible to
experience it in the UK, for a number of
reasons. This is also true for DRM on FM.
I want to find out how the audio of the
HD Radio system sounds, using either
an online portal or a decoder of some
sort. Unlike DRM and DAB, which are
open standards, the HD Radio system
is proprietary.
DTS, the new owner of the IBOC
system designed by iBiquity, jealously
guards the technical details, and much
of the information available has been
obtained by reverse-engineering the
broadcast signal.
That is quite a task when you
think about it.
AM in the USA and NAB 2022
After a long period of a slow decline in
listening to AM radio, a growing number
of people believe that HD Radio on AM
has a future. AM radio is struggling to
stay relevant in today’s digital world.
This decline encouraged the Federal
Communications Commission (FCC) to
authorize all-digital AM broadcasts from
October 2020. More station owners are
considering HD Radio, especially if they
want to be part of future developments
around the car dashboard. Here, they
need to employ the MA3 (All Digital)
mode. This is a very different approach
to the UK and Europe, where the trend
is to close down all AM stations up to
30MHz.
The upcoming NAB 2022 Show
in the USA (23rd to 27th April 2022)
featured three distinct conference
sessions on HD Radio:
https://nabshow.com/2022
• The Future of AM Radio is All
Digital (CBS Radio)
• Exploring the Effects of Directional
Antenna Pattern Bandwidth on MA3
Transmissions […], and
1
An Introduction
to HD Radio
Kevin Ryan looks at the HD Radio / IBOC digital
transmission format in use in North and parts of South
America through the mediaU Portal, looks at NAB 2022
and tests the Auna IR160 Internet Radio.
• HD Radio Broadcasting.
The first paper started with a brief
history of the development of all-digital
AM and then looked at the advantages
of using the all-digital AM (mode MA3).
MA3 allows broadcasters to send audio
program metadata, such as artists and
album cover images, to receivers to give
it a similar look and feel as HD Radio on
FM. Using MA3 also narrows the overall
bandwidth, from around 30 to 20kHz.
This promises a significant reduction in
adjacent-channel interference compared
to analogue services. Looking at an MA3
(20kHz) signal using a remote receiver, it
looks similar to a wideband DRM (18kHz)
signal (Fig. 1). A closer look shows that
the data carriers between 10 and 20kHz
from the centre frequency are 20dB lower
than those closer in.
WWFD & FM Simulcasting
The second paper (above) consisted of
a technical report from WWFD (820kHz,
Frederick MD), the first AM broadcast
station to transmit using the HD Radio
MA3 all-digital mode full-time. The digital
broadcast began on July 16th, 2018, and
it is still going. At night, WWFD uses a
two-tower directional array that creates a
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40
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Digital Radio
ALL PICTURES: KEVIN RYAN
Fig. 1: This waterfall display of WWFD from a
KiwiSDR shows the spectrum of the MA3 signal,
with outer sidebands at lower power.
Fig. 2: The top-level menu of the mediaU radio
portal.
Fig. 3: The mediaU website player with the
audio of Y101 FM in the Philippines. This is,
supposedly, a station using HD.
Fig. 4: Part of the listings of HD radio stations in
Vancouver as shown on the HD Radio website.
Fig. 5: The mediaU listing on the portal is different
and shows that most of the supplemental
channels are relays of local AM stations.
Fig. 6: One of the screens from a software
decoder showing technical information about an
HD broadcast on FM.
radiation pattern with one null. The antenna
modifications were less effective than
WWFD expected, and WWFD hopes that
the findings from operational use will help
stations in moving to all-digital operation.
Finally, the third paper mentioned
above introduced a new system to better
synchronize analogue FM to HD Radio
switchover when the receiver blends from
analogue FM to the digital HD-1 audio
simulcast. This does not require off-air
monitoring to calculate how to adjust audio
delays across the two audio streams.
The new system overcomes a problem
with HD Radio receivers that monitor
signals and select audio output: It seems
that some receivers never select the HD
Radio broadcast and stay tuned to the
analogue FM station.
Sub Channels, Coding and
mediaU
I began my explorations with the mediaU
portal for internet radios; it offers an ‘HD’
category. I checked whether the NRSC-5
Decoder software projects had made any
progress and wanted to see if the KiwiSDR
system was of any use for the issue. ‘NRSC’
stands for the National Radio Systems
Committee in the USA and NRSC-5-D is the
IBOC Digital Radio Broadcasting Standard.
https://tinyurl.com/234zkhx6
HD Radio has its own terminology
when it comes to broadcasting additional
programmes. The technique is only used
on the FM band. HD Radio on the AM band
has very limited data capacity, and the FCC
tends to restrict stations to a single audio
channel. Broadcasting more than one audio
channel is ‘multicasting’. The station’s
usual audio is the main program service
(MPS); any other channels are supplemental
program service(s) or SPS. A maximum
of three of the latter can be broadcast, in
addition to the MPS. The MPS channel is
often referred to as the ‘HD-1’ channel, and
the SPS/multicast channels are known
as the ‘HD-2’, ‘HD-3’, and ‘HD-4’ channels.
Moreover, HD Radio uses a proprietary
codec called High Definition Coding (HDC).
This is a variant of HE-AACv1 used by some
DAB+ stations in the UK. There is more
information on how many SPS channels
the two FM modes support on the web, for
example, at this URL:
https://tinyurl.com/4xzbwvyt
The mediaU radio portal is not as wellknown as the bigger alternative, Frontier
Silicon. I came across it when I evaluated
the Majority Pembroke hybrid radio. This
radio provides access to the portal; I was
able to link the radio to my favourite station
list stored on the portal. Other radios, like
the Bush 1810, use the station database
anonymously and do not access this
list. You can access the portal from your
PC or mobile device. By registering, you
gain access to the full facilities, including
maintaining your own list of stations.
https://www.mediayou.net/web
Features and the HD Category
I covered this portal in some detail when
I reviewed the above-mentioned internet
receivers and I will just summarise the key
features of the portal. The categories and
shown in Fig. 2.
First, the Genres are very varied; they
range from the expected ones (News and
Pop) to selected geographical areas (India
and the Middle East), some are in a single
language (Tamil) and others, like Scanner,
feature relays of LiveATC.net channels,
containing Air Traffic Control and railroad
frequencies mainly from North America.
Many were silent but I found a lot of voice
traffic on the ATC from Montreal.
The Weather genre mainly featured NOAA
All Hazard Weather Radio for many locations
in the USA, but I also found a few entries for
Thai Weather Radio. The Location tab starts
at the continental level and then breaks
down to countries. Some of the stations will
come up as ‘unavailable’; if any of them are a
particular favourite of yours, you might have
to use another online radio tuner.
The DAB category tab only expanded to
Africa, Europe, Asia and Oceania/Pacific.
That made sense to me until I expanded
the Asia group. There was a single entry
on China with twelve FM stations listed.
The few stations I tried were listed as
unavailable. Oceania listed many stations
from Australia, but this seemed incomplete,
with many ABC services missing.
2
Europe still listed Irish stations, although
officially the country closed down its DAB
services. Malta was a much better fit, listing
all of the local stations that were carried
on the two DAB multiplexes, with the small
island broken down by regions. Malta is
unusual in that a number of stations from
other countries, such as Italy and the UK, are
available on their multiplexes, presumably
due to tourism.
The final category tab with lists of
stations is the HD one, offering just Asia
and North America. The tab lists HD radio
stations in the Philippines and Thailand,
which is correct. Only one station did launch
the mediaU player (Fig. 3) but its website
did not mention HD radio. Thailand has
TV5 FM94-HD3. This seemed to indicate
that it relays the audio from TV5, the Thai
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June 2022 RadioUser
41
Digital Radio
Royal Army Television station. The listing
indicates that the FM service on 94MHz
carries the audio on the HD3 sub-channel.
HD Radio in the Americas
North America is the home of HD with
stations listed for the USA, Puerto
Rico, Mexico and Canada. After a bit
of research on the HD Radio website, I
settled on HD Radio stations in Vancouver
Canada because of the limited number
of broadcast stations to make checking
easier. Typically, stations broadcast a
mixture of analogue and digital called the
‘hybrid mode’. The analogue carries the
FM audio. The digital sub-channels offer
the main analogue audio relay on the
HD-1 channel and other stations from the
same group on the HD-2 to HD-4 ones. I
started with the HD Radio website page
for Canada; it listed CJAX, CFMI, CHQM,
and CHLG as carrying secondary digital
channels (Fig. 4). HD Radio files one AM
station: CKNW 980kHz, with an HD-2
channel, but the station’s website says that
CKNW is on CIFM FM 101MHz on their subchannel HD-2.
https://tinyurl.com/4dnp8frm
3
MediaU HD Radio Vancouver
CHQM has three digital channels listed
as ‘Variety/Soft Rock’: 103.5-1 CHQM
FM HD1; Sports TSN 103.5-1 CHQM FM
HD2; and Sports TSN 103.5-1 CHQM FM
HD3. The data on the HD Radio website
is incomplete in my view, and I checked
the information on the stations’ websites.
The portal presents a different view of the
HD Radio situation in Vancouver (Fig. 5).
CHQM has the FM audio on HD-1, CKST a
comedy oriented station on 1040 kHz on
HD-2 and CFTE BNN Bloomberg on 1410
kHz and HD-3.
Checking a little further online, I found
that CJAX has CKWX City News 1130kHz
on HD-2 and CISL Sports 650 Network
650kHz on HD-3. All this digging for
information showed that the mediaU
website was, in fact, fairly current. This is
a common use of HD Radio in the USA and
Canada. The secondary digital channels
typically relay local AM stations, which are
part of the same group. The mediaU portal
does not list any relevant technical details
like audio codec or bit rates.
Auna IR160 Radio
and the AirMusic app
Armed with better information on HD Radio
I wanted to find out how it would sound on
a radio device.
4
My test receiver was the Auna IR160
Internet Radio without DAB or FM.
https://tinyurl.com/2p8vfauj
The first thing to note is that the radio
presents the information in a way, different
to how it is offered online. The stations are
all grouped together either under genres or
geographical locations. The IR160 supports
the My mediaU function, which accesses a
list of favourites on the portal stored under a
personal login.
Starting from scratch, I enabled the
myMedia menu option on the radio to add
the icon to the standby menu. Clicking
on it brought up a QR code that I found
unhelpful. I assumed the code simply took
you to the mediaU website, where I already
have an account. Connecting a radio to
the portal is different to the way a Frontier
Silicon receiver works. In that case, the radio
provides an access code. A mediaU radio
requires the device’s unique MAC address.
The result should be the same, with the
radio being linked to the portal, which
provides you with access to your list of
favourite stations.
MediaU radios come with their own app
like the Frontier Silicon UNDOK one. The app
was not necessary because the IR160 ships
with a remote control. However, at times it is
more convenient to have a graphical view of
what is going on.
‘Real’ HD Radio and a Decoder
After a few tests I had to conclude that, first,
I was not really listening to HD Radio on
either the radio or the portal. In fact, I was
‘blind’ because there was no information
displayed about the codec in use or the bit
rate. Second, the audio stream most likely
used the audio from the original station
output rather than the HD sub-channel
audio carried on the relaying station.
Two projects are reverse-engineering
the HD Radio system and as far as I know,
they both only handle HD Radio on FM. I
have used the theori software and played a
small test file. There are references on the
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42
RadioUser June 2022
Digital Radio
5
github website that hint at it also handling
AM. The other project is a bit more active
but hampered by a lack of test recordings to
unpick HD Radio on AM.
I found it all very interesting but none of
these decoders yet provide a simple .exe
file for Windows.
https://tinyurl.com/57wtbfvr
More details and other screenshots are
on the technical repository called GitHub.
https://github.com/markjfine/nrsc5-dui
https://tinyurl.com/2p9efzek
You might wonder why to use a PC
to receive HD Radio when receivers are
readily available. First of all, you can use a
standard SDR dongle; from the screenshots
in Fig. 6, you may see that the app extracts
and assembles a lot of information that a
physical receiver will not display.
https://tinyurl.com/jmbh6cuu
A second development I have played with
seems to be still under development.
https://github.com/theori-io/nrsc5
https://www.rtl-sdr.com/tag/nrsc-5/
https://tinyurl.com/39zm4nbz
Note that setting up these decoders
can be quite complicated and involves the
download of quite a few software packages
from the internet.
KiwiSDR Monitoring
The FCC in the USA lets AM stations decide
if they want to use the all-digital mode.
As the name implies, this does not offer a
simulcast of the (analogue) audio. Using
USA-based KiwiSDR receivers, I logged
WWFD Frederick Maryland on 820kHz and
WSRO Ashland Massachusetts 650kHz
pushing out a DRM-like sound. By contrast,
I was unable to detect WMGG-HD Tampa
Florida 1470kHz or WFAS White Plains
New York on 1230kHz. In my opinion, it
is unlikely that there will be an extension
• In the Box: radio, remote control, manual,
European PSU, UK adapter that is pushed onto
the EU adapter to convert it into a UK 3-pin
plug; I noted that it needed a bit of force. The
remote control is identical to the one with the
Majority Pembroke.
• Wi-Fi Connection: My router settings caused
me a few headaches because the radio would
not connect. I wanted to use the WPS Quick
connect and eventually found that it was not
enabled. I started with an open network (no
security, and not recommended) to prove
that the radio was not faulty. Trying various
settings on the 2.4 GHz WiFi, I found that
WPA Personal worked. The quickest way to
set up my mediaU was to create a login on
the website. Find the MAC address of the
receiver in the System Information and save
the details on the portal. Add some stations
to the ‘my mediaU’ area. Power-cycle the
receiver, and it should pick up whatever you
have added online. Repeat the power-cycle if
this does not work.
6
in the future to decode HD Radio, mainly
because of the bandwidth occupied by the
digital sub-carriers on the AM band. For
example, the DRM extension cannot decode
the All India Radio (AIR) broadcasts using
18kHz, and the HD Radio ones use wider
bandwidths than that. However, I think the
KiwiSDR system remains the best bet for a
software decoder.
https://hdradio.com/all-digital-am/
A Disappointing Result
Overall, monitoring HD Radio remains a
dream for the moment. We can get some
idea of what a couple of the sub-channels
• On the rear: Line Out, Aux-In, and a USB port
connected to play external audio. In standby
mode, the radio displays either a clock,
weather for your area or financial information.
The manual is well written with an expanded
menu diagram and is easy to follow. The IR160
cost £69.99 including shipping from Germany,
and it arrived within five days.
Table 1: Notes on the IR160 Radio.
sound like by tuning in stations on the
national DAB multiplexes because HDC is a
variant of HE-AACv1. LBC News at 32 kbps
or Boom Radio at 24 kbps would sound like
some HD-2 or HD-3 sub-channels. I could
not find any relevant DAB+ matches for the
HD-1 channels at either 48 or 64 kbps.
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June 2022 RadioUser
43
New Media and Internet Radio
SHAUN KEVENEY.
Chrissy Brand
chrissyLB@hotmail.co.uk
O
rdinary people’s views and
stories are often missing
from conflict situations or, at
best, only covered fleetingly.
Radio, television and the print media
concentrate on the dramatic stories,
talking to people who have been bombed
out of their cities or forced to flee to
another country.
There are a great number of people,
often young, who have built loyal
followings as vloggers. Some of those
that I follow have been particularly
insightful in recent months. I am not
alone in obtaining much information on
the Ukraine war through the impressions
and videos of individuals who are
living through or directly affected
by the conflict.
These vloggers, granted, perhaps do
not all qualify under the definition of
‘ordinary people’.
The Ukraine war is probably the first
in Europe since the inexorable rise of
the vlogger; this source of independent
media is, therefore, an exciting
development and a further useful tool
for others to follow the conflict in a way
that is overlooked by the daily television
and radio news programmes.
Anti-War Protests, and More
Although ‘vloggers’ (‘video-bloggers’)
can be different from the average
citizen, with a higher standard of
education and better social mobility
than the majority of the population.
Most come across as ‘ordinary people’.
A handful of Russian vloggers have left
the country and reported on this on their
YouTube channels.
Niki Proshin in Saint Petersburg, for
example, has been giving the lowdown
on everyday life, the cost of living
and food, for over a year. His 61,000
subscribers have been entertained
with reports that have included
topics ranging from growing up in the
Noughties to visiting Vladivostok. He
recently covered anti-war protests in
Saint Petersburg, looked at the effects
of sanctions and considered the huge
changes in Russia.
Another video diary, Natasha’s
Adventures, is from Khabarovsk, Far
1
Vloggers: A New
Form of Free Radio?
Chrissy Brand looks at independent Russian vloggers
who shed new light on the country and argues that this
new form of media may well be the independent radio
of our time. She then extolls the calming virtues of radio
use while driving.
East Russia. Nearly 300,000 subscribers
have followed Natasha since 2018. She
has spoken about swimming, exploring
abandoned Soviet sites, hiking, history,
cinema, and sexism in Russia.
Roman is a vlogger with, perhaps, the
biggest following amongst the Russians
who I follow (Fig. 2). Also known as
NFKRZ, he has amassed over one million
subscribers to his channel. His down-toearth approach is appealing and makes
for great audio-visual commentary. He
does have a serious side, though. In
April 2022, he fled Russia for Georgia,
which has provided Roman and other
Russians a safer haven.
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44
RadioUser June 2022
New Media and Internet Radio
NFKRZ
2
ELI FROM RUSSIA
3
A New Form of Media
Eli is a vlogger who has remained in
Russia (Fig. 3). She talks about new
laws that appeared in the country and
how sanctions affected access to social
media and networks. Finally, I also follow
Victoria Terekhina, who escaped with her
family to Uzbekistan after the invasion.
For me, vloggers like these are the
equivalent of independent radio and free
radio pioneers. Individuals can bring a
unique and valuable perspective to the
world, developing sizeable audiences and
producing information streams that run
parallel to that of the mainstream radio
and television world.
All of these bloggers also give their
thoughts on the impact of the war,
sometimes in a coded way, due to the
real danger of contravening Russian laws
on how the topic is spoken of. Each one
has produced their own media channel,
in English; many are worthy of any TV
or radio network: full of opinion, current
affairs, travelogues and creative content.
https://youtube.com/c/NikiProshin
https://tinyurl.com/y422nb9p
www.youtube.com/c/MultiNfz/videos
https://tinyurl.com/37ry5w7x
https://tinyurl.com/4h4c5vv6
Patreon
Patreon has been established for almost
a decade now, as a way to raise funds
for projects and media content. I first
became aware of it in the embryonic days,
when PCJ Media in Taiwan was one radio
station that I used to enjoy and which
raised funds through Patreon. Other small
radio stations and programmes also
use the channel.
Subscribers to Patreon channels make a
small payment each month, often around
£5 per channel. In return, the subscriber
is notified about exclusive content,
sometimes behind-the-scenes looks.
Subscribers also revive notifications of
new content or updates before anyone
else. For those that can afford to donate,
it is a satisfying, modern-day form of
becoming a patron of the arts.
Patreon is not only for up-and-coming
creators of media content. Some
big names avail themselves of the
possibilities offered. Late last year, DJ
Shaun Keveney decided to leave BBC
6 after 14 years. He took to Patreon to
produce a weekly programme, Community
Garden Radio. Currently, 2,100 people fund
Shaun £4 a month each (Fig. 1). “In each
episode of the podcast, Shaun barricades
himself into his top room and makes his
way through 20 years’ worth of old ideas
trapped in notebooks, on old hard drives,
scribbled on the backs of beer mats and
the like. He then asks creative people of all
stripes to do the same and share with us
those ideas they themselves have clung to,
that never saw the light of day.” In tandem
with this, Shaun hosts a comedy podcast
called Creative Cul-de-Sac (Fig. 1).
https://tinyurl.com/2s26j3t4
On-the-Road Road Radio
In the October 2021 issue, I expressed
concern over what form the in-car
entertainment system in my next car
would take, and the fear of the possibility
of not having access to medium wave or
FM. I need not have worried and am happy
to report that my 2017 Citroen C1 radio
has FM and medium wave, along with
Fig. 1: Former BBC 6 presenter Shaun Keveney
now channels his output via Patreon.
Fig. 2: Roman, a Russian vlogger who has now
fled to Georgia. Fig. 3: Vlogger Eli, one of today’s
‘roving’ Russian reporters.
Fig. 4: Radio Art Zone, from the city of Esch in
Luxembourg: inspiration, all summer long.
Fig. 5: Smooth Chill radio plays soothing music to
help ease some of life’s stress.
DAB+. I now have access to an almost
overwhelming number of radio stations.
This increased choice has certainly
enhanced my driving experience. I spend
quite a lot of time on the road, usually
journeying between north-west and southeast England, and the more varied that the
radio programme content on offer is, then
the better the journey tends to be.
It has also been refreshing to pick up
some of the Liverpool and North Wales
digital multiplexes whilst on the road in
Yorkshire. The DAB signal is fine overall
but is, surprisingly, non-existent at times:
Parts of the M60 motorway, and in
several areas of the A259 from Brighton
to Folkestone. FM still seems a far more
robust technology to me.
Perhaps the situation will be improved
when-vehicle dashboards come equipped
with internet-based infotainment
systems. Hybrid radio, combining 5G
and infotainment systems like Apple
CarPlay or Android Auto is an exciting
prospect. In the USA, Fred Jacobs, founder
of consulting firm Jacobs Media, has
written about how, ”radio has fit into the
dash historically and who will dictate its
path to the future […]. The idea that some
automakers are rethinking their 90-year
policy of radios solidly positioned in the
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June 2022 RadioUser
45
New Media and Internet Radio
Date
Time (UTC)
Station
Programme
Podcast
URL/ Stream/ Frequency
Weekdays
1800 to 2000
Rewind Radio, Alberta
and Beach Radio
The Charlee Morgan Show
https://tinyurl.com/5n8fwdzp
https://945rewindradio.ca
https://tinyurl.com/yckhv96v
Weekdays
0800 to 0900
Radio Poland
News, cultural features
www.polskieradio.pl/395
Polish Radio app and
WRN https://tinyurl.com/2p93c7x9
0000 to 0100
2000 to 2100
Radio Skye
The Book Wagon’s Bits and Bobs
https://tinyurl.com/bdexe53r
https://radioskye.com/shows-schedule and FM
0500 to 0530
BBC Five Live
The Big Green Money Show
BBC Sounds
MW, online www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m00162p6
Fridays
1100 to 1300
Baroque and Beyond Radio
(numerous US states
including OR, MN, NH)
Baroque and Beyond with Mikhail Badenov
https://tinyurl.com/9jzmv54u
GCR Channel 3, and http://baroqueandbeyondradio.com
Fridays
1900 to 2100
RTE Lyric
RTÉ Lyric Live: National Symphony Orchestra
https://tinyurl.com/ycycekps
www.rte.ie and FM
Wednesdays
Thursdays
Fridays
Folk Club with Lynette Fay
BBC Sounds
Fridays
2230 to 0000
BBC Radio Ulster
Saturdays
1800 to 2000
Unique Radio Australia
Eclectic Views With Jen In The Rad
https://tinyurl.com/2p8s65ha
www.uniqueradio.biz and short wave
https://tinyurl.com/3935abcr
www.portobelloradio.com
https://tinyurl.com/26vru32y
105.9, online www.bishopfm.com
First Sunday of the
month
1000 to 1100
Portobello Radio
Dick O’Dells Adventures In Music: A Generosity Of G
Sundays
Wednesdays
1800 to 2100
2300 to 0200
Bishop FM 105.9
Gary Grainger’s Blues Show
www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0016362 FM, DAB
Table 1. Chrissy‘s Top Listening Recommendations for the Month Ahead.
RADIO ART ZONE
SMOOTH CHILL
4
center of their dashboards, now known
as ‘head-units’, should send shockwaves
throughout the radio business from
Napa to New York.”
https://tinyurl.com/2p9xm7ec
In the meantime, I have found Smooth
Chill (Digital One, DAB+) to be the nearperfect radio station for me while driving
(Fig, 5). It has very few advertisements,
no news and no presenters. Don’t get me
wrong, there is of course a vital place for
adverts, news, DJs and presenters: the
latter form the very lifeblood of a radio
station’s identity.
However, sometimes you just need
to hear continuous music from a genre
that calms you. A radio station that does
this, adding a surprise element that your
own music playlists can never achieve, is
a special thing.
Artists on Smooth Chill I had not heard
before included LTJ Xperience and Lemon
Jelly. These are accompanied by longtime exponents of downbeat and chill-out
music, such as Groove Armada, Massive
Attack, Deep Forest and French duo,
Air. Smooth Chill is an ideal anecdote
to the woes of the world and keeps any
road rage at bay.
https://tinyurl.com/2tjpmwpv
There are similar stations on the air
in the UK, such as Magic Chilled, and, of
course, further afield. These should not be
confused with Absolute Chillout, which is
an internet station that is separate from
the Absolute Radio brand. It is available
by saying “Alexa, Play Absolute Chillout on
Tunein.” It has been said that, “it’s the stuff
that dreams are made of. Put together with
the islands in mind, it’s perfect for closing
your eyes and relaxing to thoughts of warm
nights and sandy beaches.”
http://absolutechillout.com
Radio Art Zone
Last but not least, Radio Art Zone is an
innovative radio/ art station, set up as part
of the Esch European Capital of Culture
5
2022 events. It will run for 100days on
Radio ARA on 87.8 FM and stream online.
Radio Art Zone takes to the air from June
18th to September 25th. According to the
website, “The Radio Art Zone schedule
consists of two daily programmes: newlycommissioned 22-hour radio productions
created by more than 100 international
and local artists, and 2-hour live shows
from kitchens in the community.
Additionally, Radio Art Zone offers artist
residencies, workshops, youth productions
plus interventions in public space,
opening up participatory opportunities
for residents and visitors to the Capital of
Culture region. Save the date and tune in
to a zone where radio and art mix freely!”
https://radioart.zone
https://esch2022.lu/en
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RadioUser June 2022
TV & Radio: Past & Present
ALL PICTURES: THE KEITH HAMER+GARRY SMITH BBC COLLECTION, EXCEPT FIG. 3: JOHN ASTON, MANAGER, BBC GRAPHIC DESIGN
Keith Hamer
Keith405625.kh1@gmail.com
Garry Smith
Garry405625.gs@gmail.com
here were only two new
noteworthy television
programmes in 1970. These were
The Six Wives Of Henry VIII, first
transmitted on January 1st, and Doomwatch
on February 9th. Doom certainly descended
at the BBC on March 2nd when Scenery
staff went on an unofficial 1-day strike.
This affected only ‘live’ programmes. The
Blue Peter studio was completely bare of
scenery, including tables and chairs. Two
new ‘current affairs’ programmes came to
Radio 4 on April 6th. These were The World
Tonight and PM.
Several new transmitters opened during
1970, following the introduction of colour
television the previous year on BBC-1.
Waltham began Test Transmissions on
Channel 58 on June 24th. Regular broadcasts
began on June 30th. Colour transmissions
officially began on July 18th.
For an overview of new transmitters and
new programmes in the 1970s, see Tables 1
and 2.
A plethora of local radio stations opened
during 1970. These were BBC Radio Bristol
(September 4th), BBC Radio Manchester
(September 10th), BBC Radio London
(October 6th), BBC Radio Oxford (October
29th), and BBC Radio Birmingham (November
9th). December saw the opening of BBC
Radio Medway (18th), BBC Radio Solent
(31st), and BBC Radio Teesside (also on the
31st). Special historic broadcasts that year
included coverage of the total eclipse of
the Sun on March 7th, transmitted ‘live’ from
Mexico, between 6.29 pm and 6.34 pm UK
time; the splashdown on April 17th of the
Apollo 13 astronauts, watched by 26-million
viewers on BBC-1; the State Opening of
Parliament televised in colour for the first
time on July 2nd. New BBC-1 on-screen
station ID graphics were introduced on July
3rd by BBC Midlands and BBC North. Finally,
to mark the first year of colour on the BBC’s
first network, a special Globe caption was
radiated from November 15th for one week.
T
The OU Begins and BBC-1
Midlands Goes Colour
Three new BBC Local Radio stations opened
in 1971: BBC Radio Newcastle (January 2nd),
BBC Radio Humberside (February 25th), and
BBC Radio Derby. The latter opened on April
29th with its signature tune, The Derby Ram,
broadcasting on 96.5MHz with a power of
1
BBC 100 Years:
1970-1979
Keith Hamer and Garry Smith outline the continuous
development of the BBC during the 1970s. The decade
saw the extension of BBC local radio, the Open University
and Ceefax, plus many memorable new programmes.
5.5kW. The image in Fig. 1 shows one of
the authors during a ‘live’ interview with the
late Colin Bloomfield. Only two new BBC1 transmitters were brought into service.
Belmont began local UHF Tests on January
28th using Channel 22. The Sandy Heath UHF
transmitter was opened on March 22nd and
carried BBC-1 East Anglia programmes on
Channel 31.
An attempt to raise the UK’s highereducation standards began on January 3rd
with the start of Open University programmes
on BBC TV and Radio (Fig. 2). Two lighter
programmes also took to the airwaves: The
Old Grey Whistle Test began on September
21st on BBC-2 (Fig. 3). The unusual title
was based on a theory held by some
record producers. Before a new record was
released, a rough mix would be played to the
grey-haired doormen at the various recording
studios. If they could whistle the tune after
hearing it just once, it passed ‘the old grey
whistle test’ and was released. The other
new programme was Bruce Forsyth And The
Generation Game on BBC-1. One of the multitalented compère’s catch-phrases was, “nice
to see you, to see you nice”. Oh, didn’t he do
well‽
The year was a busy time for BBC-1
Midlands. Colour transmissions from the
new BBC Broadcasting Centre at Pebble
Mill, Birmingham, began on June 7th. The
regional news opt-out, Midlands Today,
was the final programme transmitted
from the BBC Midlands Studios in Broad
Street. Pebble Mill was officially opened on
November 10th.
Tests, Eurovision, and an
Approaching Menace
Before 1972, the Post Office controlled
the hours broadcasters could transmit.
This somewhat bizarre situation came to
an end on January 19th. In February 1972,
a new BBC Electronic Colour Test Card
was introduced for field trials. This was
the forerunner of the well-known Colour
Test Card “G” which has been used, with
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47
TV & Radio: Past & Present
modifications, throughout the world (Fig. 4).
Meanwhile, BBC-1 Holme Moss (Channel
B2) transmitted the monochrome Test
Card “C” for just two minutes from 00:23 on
February 7th. Television service engineers
(and music lovers) were deprived of all BBC2 Trade Test Transmissions from February
10th, due to the government declaring a
‘Power State of Emergency’. However, they
resumed on Saturday, March 4th.
The BBC had the honour of presenting
the 1972 Eurovision Song Contest ‘live’ from
Edinburgh on March 25th. The competition
was won by Luxembourg with the UK
entry Beg, Steal Or Borrow by The New
Seekers being placed second. According
to (incorrect) official BBC information, the
first regular television news programme for
children emerged on April 4th, 1972. Initially
called Newsround on BBC-1, the programme
later became John Craven’s Newsround (Fig.
5). The first news programme for younger
viewers started on April 23rd, 1950, and
Mastermind began on September 11th. The
format of the infamous black chair and
intimidating surroundings was inspired by
the programme creator, Bill Wright, with his
experiences of being interrogated by the
Gestapo in World War II. Even the signature
tune was entitled Approaching Menace. The
show was first presented by Icelandic-born
Magnus Magnusson.
Last of the Summer Wine, and a
Power State of Emergency
There was only one celebrated new BBC-1
programme in 1973. Last Of The Summer
Wine, which seemed to last a lifetime,
first appeared on January 4th. The final
programme was transmitted on BBC-1 on
Sunday, August 29th, 2010. Having said that,
the wine continues to last, not only during
the summer but all year round on other
channels. Well, with added commercials
every 12 minutes, it regularly fills up an
hour’s airtime!
The opening of BBC Radio Carlisle on
November 24th completed the first 20 BBC
Local Radio stations. It was later renamed
BBC Radio Cumbria. The station is shown in
Fig. 6 during a visit by the authors on May
18th, 2010.
BBC-2 Trade Test Transmissions were
cancelled in 1972, due to a declared “Power
State of Emergency”. The situation towards
the end of 1973 was even worse. Once again,
all BBC-2 Trade Test Transmissions had to be
cancelled from December 10th, this time due
to the government’s “Power, Coal & Oil State
of Emergency”.
As one Prime Minister said, in the late
Fig. 1: One of the Studios at BBC Radio Derby. The
station opened on April 29th, 1971.
Fig. 2: Open University (OU) programmes began
on January 3rd, 1971. Fig. 3: The first edition of
The Old Grey Whistle Test was aired on September
21st, 1971. Fig. 4: The BBC Colour Test Card “G”.
Fig. 5: Initially called Newsround from April
4th, 1972, the programme later became John
Craven’s Newsround. Fig. 6: BBC Radio Carlisle,
which opened on November 24th, 1973, was later
renamed BBC Radio Cumbria. Fig. 7: A typical
page from the BBC Ceefax service. Regular
transmissions began on September 23rd, 1974.
2
Seventies, when stepping off his holiday
flight: “Crisis, what crisis‽”
Ceefax and ‘Sound-in-Sync’
The only well-known new BBC-1 programme
during 1974 was It Ain’t Half Hot Mum.
This was first shown on January 3rd. It is
unlikely to be shown ever again due to its
perceived racial overtones. On March 9th,
the Home Office took over responsibility
for broadcasting from the Ministry Of Posts
And Telecommunications. The latter came
into being on October 1st, 1969, due to the
Post Office Act 1969. This changed the
status of the Post Office from a government
department to a public authority. According
to Hansard, the dissolution of the Ministry
of Posts And Telecommunications (Volume
871) was debated on April 1st, 1974.
From an engineering perspective, there
were two main developments. In April,
BBC engineers won the Queen’s Award
to Industry for their work on a Soundin-Sync system, an early form of signal
digitalisation. On September 23rd, regular
BBC Ceefax transmissions began (Fig. 7).
Its basic specifications are still used by
most European television services in 2022
and are considered by many to out-perform
the current BBC Red Button text service
provided by the multi-national concern, Red
Bee. Nothing of major importance seemed to
have occurred throughout 1975. Our archives
only highlight the first edition of Jim’ll Fix
It on BBC-1 being shown on May 31st, and
a four-day series of experimental radio
broadcasts from the House of Commons,
which began on June 9th.
A Sheepish Year, a Licence Fee
Freeze, and an Interview
Similarly, for 1976, the only new programme
that we could round up was for lovers of
sheep and dogs on BBC-2 with the first
edition of One Man And His Dog on February
17th. It was, perhaps, not Earth-shattering
news in 1977, but in that year the authors
3
BBC-1 (1970)
Brighton (September 21st)
Darwen (June 1st)
Divis (September 19th)
Dover (January 3rd)
Keighley (April 20th)
Mendip (May 11th)
Oxford (May 16th)
Pontop Pike (July 13th)
Tacolneston (October 3rd on Channel 62)
Waltham (July 18th)
BBC-2
Brighton (September 21st, Colour)
Hannington (June 13th, main station)
Heathfield (October 17th, Colour)
Limavady (April 4th, main station)
Rosemarkie (July 11th, Colour)
Saddleworth (February 2nd)
BBC-Wales
Llanelli (June 8th, VHF
Wenvoe (April 4th, UHF)
Table 1: New Transmitters (A-Z, 1970)
were interviewed for the first time about
their interest in DX-TV. The interview with the
presenter, Alastair Yates, was broadcast on
BBC Radio Derby several times on July 18th.
It was also transmitted on the BBC Radio
2 programme, the John Dunn Show, Radio
1’s Newsbeat, and the BBC World Service.
Possibly, as a result, the licence fee was
fixed for one year on July 29th!
Some Changes To Radio Output
and a BBC Strike
There was a dearth of new programmes too,
in 1978. The first edition of All Creatures
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48
RadioUser June 2022
TV & Radio: Past & Present
• All Creatures Great And Small
(January 8th, 1978)
• Bruce Forsyth And The Generation Game
(October 2nd, 1971)
• Doomwatch (February 9th,1970)
• It Ain’t Half Hot Mum (January 3rd, 1974)
• Jim’ll Fix It (May 31st, 1975)
• Last Of The Summer Wine (January 4th, 1973)
• Mastermind (September 11th, 1972)
• Newsround (April 4th, 1972)
• One Man And His Dog (February 17th, 1976
• Open University (January 3rd, 1971)
• PM (April 6th, 1970)
• The Dance Band Days (August 27th, 1979)
• The Old Grey Whistle Test
(September 21st, 1971)
• The Six Wives Of Henry VIII (January 1st, 1970)
• The World Tonight (April 6th, 1970)
• You And The Night And The Music
(January 27th, 1979)
• Young Musician Of The Year
(February 7th, 1978).
4
Table 2: Programme Highlights (A-Z: 1970-1979).
Great And Small was shown on January 8th,
and the first Young Musician Of The Year was
broadcast on February 7th. Originally one
of the year’s cultural highlights on BBC-2, it
has now been demoted to BBC-4 which, in
turn, may be relegated to an online service
only. Several changes to radio were made in
1978. Broadcasting hours were extended on
April 1st with a 5 am to 2 am schedule. April
3rd saw the start of what must have been, a
scintillating regular service featuring radio
broadcasts from the House of Commons.
Major Long and Medium Wave frequency
changes were made on November
23rd, following the 1974/1975 Geneva
Conference, which allowed an increase
in the number, and power, of transmitters
in Europe. On November 23rd, BBC Radio
Scotland, the Scottish national radio network,
began broadcasting. Moreover, Radio 2 was
moved from 1500 metres (200kHz) longwave to 433m (693kHz) and 330m (909kHz)
MW to improve national AM reception, and
to conform to the Geneva Frequency Plan.
At the same time, the Shipping Forecast was
transferred from Radio 2 to Radio 4 to enable
them to continue being received by mariners
on LW.
Towards the end of the year, BBC services
were hit by strike action. The industrial
dispute began with television programmes
on December 21st. The action spread to BBC
radio services the following day. The BBC
were forced to merge their four national radio
networks into one combined service from 4
pm. It was called the BBC All-Network Radio
Service.
5
6
The dispute was settled later in the day at
just before 10 pm.
Radio 2 Extended And BBC Ceefax
Subtitling Begins
The traditional Radio 2 schedule closed
down for the final time on January 27th,
1979, but was re-ignited at 5 am to begin
regular, continuous 24-hour broadcasting.
Night-time hours were filled by a programme
called You And The Night And The Music.
Lovers of real music were delighted to tune
in on August 27th to hear the first edition
of The Dance Band Days on BBC Radio 2,
presented by Alan Dell. This was followed,
after a short news summary, by The Big Band
Sound. Some years later, Alan telephoned
the authors from Broadcasting House after
finishing a ‘live’ programme to arrange for
them to play some of their rare BBC Test
Card music featuring many West German
radio and television orchestras, some of
which had already been featured on the
programme. Unfortunately, Alan died shortly
before a date could be arranged. From an
engineering perspective, perhaps the most
important achievement in 1979 was on
7
September 2nd with the first programme to
be transmitted with BBC Ceefax subtitling.
In Conclusion: 1970-1979
The Seventies brought about a somewhat
turbulent time for the BBC with strikeaction at Television Centre, which disrupted
several programmes. The decade also saw
a modest extension to the BBC’s transmitter
network. Several ‘live’ programmes of
historic significance were broadcast during
those ten years of BBC history.
Next month, the authors will, once again,
delve into their archives to cover events in
the 1980s. See you next month!
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49
Aerials Now
ALL PICTURES: KEITH RAWLINGS
Keith Rawlings
Keith.g4miu@gmail.com
A
doublet is a useful HF aerial for
transmitting amateurs and SWLs
alike. Although in the past, a conventional wire dipole may have
been commonly known as a ‘doublet’, nowadays this type is recognised as a wire dipole fed with a balanced feeder. This is often known as an Open Wire Line (OWL).
It is also called a ‘ladder line’ and
‘balanced feeder’. It is nominally of a 600Ω
impedance. However, a 300Ω (or 450Ω)
ribbon feeder, which is also known as a
‘window line’, can also be used.
Using an AMU (Aerial Matching Unit) will
provide a multi-band operation.
Unlike a conventional dipole, a doublet is
‘non-resonant’ yet it will radiate effectively
over a wide range of frequencies. The top
section is typically a minimum of λ / 4 for
each section, i.e. a total length across the
top of λ /2. Nevertheless, they seem to
also work well when shorter than the ideal.
The doublet is essentially a balanced
system, and each half of the top, along
with each wire in the feed line, must be
equal in length (Fig. 1). The feeder used
with a doublet is the key, as it operates
as part of the aerial and is not just used
for transferring the power to the dipole
elements.
The graphs in Figs. 2 and 3 are modelled
on my own doublet, demonstrating the
high current points.
It is of note that OWL is happily
operating with high standing waves along
its length.
The Importance of Feeders
A simple dipole is usually made from two
lengths of wire and fed with a coaxial
cable and a BALUN included at the feed
point. The construction of a doublet, while
similar in that the top section, is made of
two wires like a dipole, the Open Wire Line
arrangement (see the previous section) is
very different and is worth discussing:
A ‘traditional’ doublet uses the OWL
model. However, many users have found
that ribbon feeders are more convenient;
they are readily available, sturdily made
and quite often easier to install.
The types with ‘slots’ (otherwise known
as ‘slotted ribbon feeders’) are preferable
to the non-slotted types.
I have noticed that the slotted types are
less prone to the effects of rain, dampness
and frost, which can adversely alter the
characteristics of the non-slotted types.
1
The ‘All-Band’ Doublet
Continuing with his investigation of some basic aerial
types, Keith Rawlings explains the making and main
functions of a simple dipole aerial that can be used on
multiple bands.
The velocity factor (Vf) has been found
to vary by some 20% on the non-slotted,
translucent, types when they are damp.
The ribbon feeder type exhibits a low loss,
but well-made OWL has even less.
It has been found that, when wellconstructed, OWL (using 2mm diameter
conductors) has a loss of 5dB per mile
at 30MHz (Source: Moxon G6XN HF
Antennas for all Locations, 1993).
To achieve this figure, it is important
that the conductors used are not made
from iron or steel wire, or, indeed, copperplated steel wire, as these materials cause
high losses.
The impedance of OWL and ribbon
feeder varies with the spacing of the
conductors and the diameter of the wire
used. For example, OWL made from
3mm diameter conductors will have an
impedance in the region of 250Ω at 12mm
spacing, and 545Ω at 150mm spacing,
whereas conductors with 1.5mm diameter
have an impedance of 360Ω at 12mm
spacing, and 655Ω at 150mm spacing.
The velocity factor (Vf) will be in the
region of .95. (Typical coaxial cable will
have a Vf of .66).
I do not presently have any OWL that I
can present photos of here, but a quick
Google came up with this website that has
some reasonable pictures:
http://www.w1aex.com/owl/owl.html
The image in Fig. 4 Illustrates some
balanced feeders.
The SOTA Beams website contains
some basic details on the construction of
a portable doublet at this URL:
https://tinyurl.com/mr393z3z
One of my first attempts at the
construction of OWL used lengths of
plastic spine bars intended for clamping
A4 sheets together. Lengths of this were
cut and holes were drilled into the flat
section to take the wire I was using. By
its nature, the plastic gripped the wires
making it very easy to keep the spacers
in place while I applied adhesive to keep
them permanently in position.
All went well until we had a moderately
windy day where the line was blown all
over the place. The spacers had far too
much wind resistance.
I then bought some round plastic rods.
I cannot remember the diameter, but it
would have been no more than 8mm. One
rod was cut to length, drilled to take the
wire, and fixed into position by wrapping
wire around the line on either side of the
spacer. This was an improvement and
lasted for quite some while before I bought
some cheap translucent 300Ω ribbon
feeder to replace it with.
This was a structural improvement but,
as pointed out earlier, it was affected by
rain and dampness.
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Aerials Now
Fig. 1: A doublet layout. Fig. 2: An AN-SOF
Simulation of currents on a doublet at 14MHz.
Fig. 3: The measurement of Fig. 2 using EZNEC
with the NEC 5 Engine. Fig. 4: Left to right: 75Ω
twin feeder, good-quality 300Ω ribbon-feeder,
cheap 300Ω ribbon-feeder, slotted 300Ω ‘window’feeder, and 450Ω window-feeder. Fig. 5: AN-SOFsimulated current distribution on a doublet, where
the sections in red are the high current spots.
Figs. 6 a-d: AN-SOF doublet simulated radiation
patterns at 7 (a), 14 (b), 21 (c), and 28MHz (d).
Fig. 7: A BT ‘twin-lead’, used to form a cheap
doublet.
It is possible to buy spacers for OWL
to make your own runs. Also, with the
proliferation of 3D printers, there are now
many designs out there to print out on your
own; even if you do not have a 3D printer,
many of us know someone who does.
For outdoor use, ABS or PET-G filament
is recommended, but I know of someone
who has been using parts made from PLA
outdoors for many years, with no apparent
degradation.
Personally, I prefer to stick with PET-G.
OWL, or ribbon feeder for that matter,
does not like sharp bends or being run
along conductive surfaces, such as down
a steel mast. However, some liberties
can be taken without causing too many
problems especially when it is used as part
of a receiving set-up.
That OWL has a nominal impedance
of 600Ω does not seem to matter when
substituting 300/450Ω ribbon feeder on a
doublet.
Terminating the OWL
As already stated, a doublet using OWL
makes for a balanced aerial. The aerial
inputs of many modern radios are
nominally 50Ω (unbalanced) although
some have ‘high-impedance’ inputs of
around 500Ω, which are intended for
connecting ‘end-fed’ or random length
wires.
‘UnBalanced’ generally means that
one side of the aerial input is grounded;
a common connector on HF radios is
the SO239 type. This is very convenient
when using coaxial cables, but not so
for aerials using OWL, since connecting
one of the doublets ‘legs’ to the outer of
the connector will effectively ‘ground’ it,
causing it to become unbalanced.
Therefore, we need some method to
convert our OWL balanced feeder to
the unbalanced input to the receiver.
My preferred method for this is to use
a truly balanced AMU. By this, I mean
2
an AMU that does not use a BALUN to
make the conversion, but one that has a
symmetrical input, either to a link-coupled
coil or, perhaps, an input circuit that uses a
differential capacitor in parallel with a coil.
A Z-Match circuit usually satisfies this
requirement.
Many AMUs have a ‘balanced’ input
that is fed to an internal BALUN, often
using a toroidal core. Without going into
it too deeply here, I am not a fan of this
approach as there may be losses incurred
that will show themselves as heat when
transmitting. The use of a BALUN at the
end of the OWL for running coax cable
back to the shack can present the same
problems.
Compromise Solutions
It has to be admitted that running OWL
or ribbon feeder to the operating position
can be problematic, and a compromise
may have to be accepted. Coaxial cable
may be connected directly to the OWL –
and precautions must be taken to prevent
common-mode currents from running on
the outer of the coax – thus unbalancing
the system. This will consist of a common
mode choke.
There are various approaches to this. A
few turns of coax cable formed into a loop
can be effective, as can a string of ferrite
cores running on the outside of the coax.
Running the cable through ferrite rings is
another option. I currently use a few turns
of RG174 cable wound around an FT24043 core to make an effective common
3
mode choke capable of handling 100W
quite easily.
This approach will only (hopefully)
prevent radiation off of the coax; it will not
change the impedance and therefore the
VSWR seen on the coax. If this VSWR is
high loss, this is caused due to dielectric
heating of the cable. The longer the cable,
plus the higher the VSWR, and the lower
the quality of the cable, the higher the
loss. For example, a run of 30ft of RG58,
with a modest (in terms of a doublet)
VSWR of 10:1 at 30MHz, would incur a
loss of around 2.5 dB. This may not sound
much; however, for 100W output at the
transmitter, you could expect only about
55-60W at the aerial. Better quality cable
would reduce these figures.
Having said that, I have used a G5RV
(which is a doublet) running from 30ft
of RG58 for many years. It had a multi-
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Aerials Now
4
5
6a
6b
6c
6d
7
turn loop on the coax and worked well on
all bands; however, operators should be
aware of the losses when using a coaxial
cable with a doublet.
On the HF amateur bands, a top length
of 130-140ft has been found to work
for 80m through to 10m, with the feeder
joined together at the tuner end; fed
against a good earth, it should radiate on
160m also.
Cebik, W4RNL suggests 44ft will work
well on 40m and above
https://tinyurl.com/59jz89f3
make contacts in the UK and most of
Europe using 100W of SSB on this band.
On all other HF bands, it also works well,
and I have no problems tuning it with
the Z Match when using 30 feet of 450Ω
windowed ribbon feeder. If you encounter
any problems when tuning, try adding or
subtracting a length of the OWL and you
should find that this cures the problem.
In conclusion, the doublet type of aerial
is, therefore, an excellent choice for those
who wish to use a dipole over a wide
range of frequencies. Construction is
made simpler when using a slotted ribbon
feeder. In the case of reception, direct
connection to coaxial cable and the use
of a choke balun will certainly give good
results.
Like a dipole, it can be ‘bent’ to fit into a
space; but remember that, unlike a single-
My Current Doublet
I am presently using a doublet with a
66ft top, tuned by a Z match for my
transmitting equipment on HF. It works
well on all bands, including 80m, where
it is technically too short. I find that I can
band dipole – where there is little current
on the ends when a doublet is used over a
range of frequencies – the points at which
there is current will vary along the wire, and
it is the maximum current points that we
want as high as possible (Fig. 5).
It should also be noted that the radiation
patterns vary with the doublet becoming
multi-lobed higher in frequency (Fig. 6).
After explaining to you all about
balanced/ribbon/open-wire line, a
reception doublet can simply be made
from bell wire or preferably, BT Drop wire,
which can be found as flat twin lead in grey
or black PVC and looks just like a large bell
wire. It is high tensile and strong.
Split the two conductors into the lengths
required for the top, knot them to stop
further splitting, as in Fig. 7, and run the
rest to your AMU.
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52
RadioUser June 2022
What’s new in the world of radio
News
Radio News
European Private
Shortwave Stations
May 1st 2022
Only legal stations are included. Most stations use low power, but a few use several kW. Note that UTC is used here not CET, nor CEST! Abbreviations used: D = Germany, DNK = Denmark, FIN = Finland, NL = Netherlands, NOR = Norway
F.pl.: future plan, Int’l = International, Irr. = irregular, LT = Local time, 24/7 = twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week
Mo = Monday, Tu = Tuesday, We = Wednesday, Th = Thursday, Fr = Friday, Sa = Saturday, Su = Sunday.
kHz
Country
Name
Transmitter site
Schedule (UTC)
3955
D
Radio Channel 292
Rohrbach Waal
Daily 0600-2000 & 2100-0500
3975
D
Shortwave Radio
Winsen
Daily 1700-2200
3985
D
Shortwaveservice
Kall-Krekel
Daily 0700-1930 (‘Radio Popexpress’ a.o.)
3995
D
HCJB
Weenermoor
24/7
5895
NOR
The Sea / Radio Northern Star
Bergen
Silent
5920
D
HCJB
Weenermoor
24/7
5930
DNK
World Music Radio
Bramming
24/7
5940
NL
Radio Piepzender
Zwolle
Irr. (0800-2000)
5955
NL
Sunlite
Westdorpe
From May 13th: 24/7
5970
DNK
Radio208
Hvidovre
24/7
5980
DNK
Radio OZ-Viola
Hillerød
We 2100-2200
5980
FIN
Scandinavian Weekend Radio
Virrat
1st Sa LT of the month (Not in May)
6005
D
Shortwaveservice
Kall-Krekel
Daily 0800-1600
6005
NL
Radio Delta International
Elburg
F.pl. (Fr or Sa 2100-0300)
6020
NL
Radio Delta International
Elburg
Irr. (Su 0600-1500)
6030
D
Shortwaveservice
Kall-Krekel
Alternative to 6085 kHz
6055
DNK
Radio OZ-Viola
Hillerød
Sa-Su 1100-1300
6070
D
Radio Channel 292
Rohrbach Waal
24/7
6085
D
Shortwaveservice
Kall-Krekel
Daily 0700-1700 (‘Radio MiAmigo Int’l’)
6115
D
Radio SE-TA 2
Gera
Irr. (1000-1200)
6140
NL
Radio Onda, Belgium
Borculo, NL
Irr. (weekends only)
6150
D
Europa 24
Datteln
Irr. (0700-1605)
6160
D
Shortwave Radio
Winsen
Daily 1500-2000
6170
FIN
Scandinavian Weekend Radio
Virrat
1st Sa of the month (Not in May)
6185
NL
Radio Piepzender
Zwolle
Irr. (0800-1400)
7260
NL
Rockpower
Nijmegen
Daily 0800-1200
7270
NL
Rockpower
Nijmegen
Daily 1200-1600
7365
D
HCJB
Weenermoor
Silent
7425
NL
Radio Piepzender
Zwolle
Irr.
7445
NL
Radio Piepzender
Zwolle
Irr. (0800-1800)
9670
D
Radio Channel 292
Rohrbach Waal
24/7
11690
FIN
Scandinavian Weekend Radio
Virrat
1st Sa of the month (Not in May)
11720
FIN
Scandinavian Weekend Radio
Virrat
1st Sa LT of the month (Not in May)
15700
DNK
World Music Radio
Randers
Daily 0700-2000 + irr. at other times
15785
D
BitExpress
Erlangen
24/7 DRM-modulation (‘Funklust’)
25800
DNK
World Music Radio
Mårslet, Aarhus
24/7
This list is published by Hartvig Media ApS on each first full day of the month – based on details supplied by radio stations,
the stations’ websites, monitoring observations, HFCC registrations, and some reasonable presumptions. The list is not copyrighted and may be published everywhere. Subscription by email is free of charge; write to shn@wmr.dk.
WORLD WAR II OCEAN BATTLEFIELDS: More
than 72,000 Americans who fought during
World War II (1939-1945) remain unaccounted
for, and more than half of them are ‘presumed
lost at sea’. U.S. government entities have
investigated WWII sites over the past 70 years
to find evidence of those missing in action
(MIA) but have faced challenges, particularly
when trying to explore strategic locations
on the seafloor. Recent advances in radio,
autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs)
and underwater imaging technologies are
making it possible to search deeper and more
challenging parts of the ocean to potentially
find some answers in wreckages, a task that has
historically fallen upon divers. In March 2022, a
U.S. research team, including oceanographers
and forensic archaeologists, completed a
2-week mission to search for planes that had
crashed in the north-western Pacific Ocean in
1945. The team found two crash sites […]. Read
the full story of how this was done at one of the
URLs, below:
(SOURCE: EoS Science News | AGU | Dacey, J.
(2022), ‘Robotic Vehicles Explore World War II
Era Ocean Battlefields’, Eos 103).
https://doi.org/10.1029/2022EO220184);
https://tinyurl.com/bdf36cw5
LIVERPOOL FOOTBALL CLUB-BRANDED
RADIO STATIONS SET TO LAUNCH: Liverpool
Football Club (LFC) has agreed on a deal with
Asia Radio Concepts to roll out new LFC-branded
radio stations throughout the Middle East and
Asia-Pacific. The multi-year agreement will see
the creation of the world’s first football-branded
and content-driven LFC Radio stations. LFC
stations will also carry LFC content, including
match reports, LFC news updates, plus player
and coach interviews. ARC director, Guy Dobson
explained, “We’re thrilled to be working with one
of the greatest football brands in the world on
this ground-breaking concept. The broadcast
industry is highly competitive, and radio
networks are always looking for that winning
formula and a point of difference, and that’s
where ARC and LFC Radio fits the brief perfectly.
ARC will work closely with interested radio
groups to re-programme existing radio stations
in terms of both music format and content
offering, to maximize audience reach in that
respective market, and relaunch those stations
as ‘LFC Radio’” […]. The roll-out of LFC Radio
branded radio stations will have an ‘Asia-Pacific
First’ strategy, including the Middle East, before
expanding into other territories and regions.
(SOURCE: LFC | RadioToday).
https://tinyurl.com/bdf36cw5
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June 2022 RadioUser
53
Push to Talk
ALL PICTURES: TIM KIRBY, EXCEPT FIG. 1: PIXABAY
1
Tim Kirby
tim@livingland.wales
A
reader asked me recently about
how one might get started with
CB Radio. As ever, the answer
starts with “it all depends”. It depends on what you would like to do. Would
you like to speak to people locally? Do you
want to use the radio from your home,
from the car or perhaps when you are out
on the hills? Are you interested, even, in
communicating with people overseas?
If you are mostly concerned with talking
to people locally, then you may consider
a simple FM/AM CB set. Bear in mind
that there is comparatively little local FM
(and AM) activity compared to the CB
halcyon days in the early 1980s. There
are, however, local activity periods (‘nets’),
which you may find worthwhile listening
to. Maybe you know someone locally who
can advise you about how much local
activity there is on CB and whether it is
the sort of activity that you would find
interesting. It might make a nice project
for a group of friends in a town or wider
area to communicate on CB radio – in
which case, you know that there will be
someone to talk to!
You will need a CB set capable of FM
(most will do AM as well), a 12V power
Burners, Superbowl
and Donald Duck:
Starting on CB
This month Tim Kirby has some practical advice on how
to get started in CB Radio, evaluating what you will need,
advising on where and when to listen in, and offering a
few words about callsigns and QSL cards.
supply and of course, an aerial and some
coaxial cable (coax) to connect the aerial
to the set.
Setting Up a Station
If you are setting up the station at home,
the aerial will work better if you can put
it up higher. However, remember that
most CB aerials are quite long. Therefore,
although you can put one up at the top
of a large pole – and people do – think
about how safe this will be in the wind!
You might do better, if you can, to bolt
the aerial to a wall rather than a chimney
stack – or you may use a guyed pole in
the garden, with the aerial on top of the
pole.
Although many people think of 5/8
wave verticals when it comes to CB base
aerials – and these are, indeed, a good
option – there are other possibilities. One
of our readers, John L from Devon, has
built a wire vertical aerial and hung it in a
tree at the end of his garden. It works very
well! You will need some coaxial cable
to run between the aerial and where your
set will be situated. It always pays to use
better-quality cable, especially if there
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54
RadioUser June 2022
Push to Talk
is a distance of more than perhaps 10m
between your set and the aerial. With
under 10m, you could use RG-58 type
coax, but over that distance, you might
consider using the thicker RG-213 type
coax, which will mean that you lose less
signal, both on transmit and receive.
Do not be tempted to use TV coax,
which is 75Ω, rather than the 50Ω that your
set and aerial are designed for. Legal CB
sets can run a maximum of 4W, so you
need to get as much of the signal from the
set to the aerial as you can!
Legal Matters and Further Afield
I haven’t talked about legality yet. Legal
CB sets can run a maximum of 4W of FM/
AM and 12W of SSB. It is fair to say that
many users, particularly those on SSB,
may be using output powers well above
12W. Some SSB operators use equipment
designed for amateur radio on CB, having
had the sets ‘wide-banded’.
Nevertheless, this is illegal and could
render you liable to prosecution.
If you are interested in talking further
afield, overseas, then you will very likely
want to try SSB. From a legal perspective,
you should know that you can only use
SSB on the CEPT CB channels, sometimes
known as the ‘Mid-Block’. There is plenty
of SSB CB operation outside this set of
channels and you should know again that
this is illegal and it could render you liable
to prosecution. Of course, there is nothing
to stop you from listening on the ‘illegal’
channels if you do not transmit.
There are a variety of multi-mode sets
available, which will satisfy these criteria
and, particularly in the summertime, you
can expect to make some good contacts
around Europe on what is known as ‘shortskip’. With increasing sunspots, you will
hear people from further afield, in fact
from all around the world.
Typically, in the morning, you may
hear signals from Australia and the
Far East; then, as the afternoon starts,
you might hear signals from North and
South America, with generally, the South
American signals being the last to fade in
the evening.
Avoiding the ‘Donald Duck’
If you have not used an SSB radio before,
you will have to get used to the tuning.
On FM and AM, all you have to do is to
turn the channel dial; if there is a station
present, it will be tuned in. On SSB, this
may not be the case and you may have
to use the clarifier to tune into the station
2
so that the speech sounds natural and
not like ‘Donald Duck’! Make sure that
your set is configured so that the clarifier
works on both transmit and receive so
that you are transmitting on the same
frequency on which you are receiving. You
might sometimes find that an SSB station
is transmitting between two of the CEPT
channels, but you can usually tune them
in, as long as your clarifier has a fairly
wide range.
If putting up a big aerial at home is not
an option for you, then if you have a car,
you might consider operating mobile
from the top of a hill. A simple multimode CB set, connected to a decent aerial
on a magnetic mount, and from a good
location, will make some great contacts!
Some operators take full-sized aerials,
with a mast to the top of a hill and use
those – it can work very well indeed.
You will note I haven’t mentioned
linear amplifiers yet, sometimes known
as ‘burners’ or ‘boots’. These units sit
between your CB set and your aerial
and boost your signal. Units vary from
25W up to in excess of 1000W. You
will have probably guessed that these
units are illegal, but you may see many
of them advertised. Some units have a
preamplifier which can be used on receive
to increase weak signals. This can be
useful in some circumstances, depending
on band noise. Using a preamplifier on
receive is quite legal.
Triple-Five and Superbowl
So far, we have only talked about the
‘hardware’ you will need. What else do
you need to know? Where to operate
and listen? For FM operators, you have
Fig. 1: The President Jackson II CB transceiver;
is a multi-mode CB set, capable, in the right
conditions, of making contacts worldwide.
Figs. 2-4: Radio-Art: A collection of vintage
American CB QSL cards.
the choice of the original UK40 channels
and the CEPT allocation. Most modern
rigs will allow you to switch between
the two sets of channels. Channel 19 on
the original UK 40 allocation is a ‘calling
channel’, of sorts, but be prepared for
some ‘family-unfriendly’ language. Tuning
up and down the CEPT band may produce
voices from far afield – you are less likely
to find other UK stations operating there,
generally speaking.
If you have an AM set and a reasonable
aerial, you may find it interesting to tune
to Channel 6, which is the American
Superbowl channel. It has nothing to do
with American Football or the Superbowl
but has everything to do with CB operators
trying to outdo each other with power
and sometimes, wit! It can be quite
entertaining to listen to, but as ever, be
prepared for ‘family unfriendly’ language.
If nothing else, it is a good indicator to
show whether the band is open to the
USA.
For legal SSB operation, your only
option is the CEPT channels, and you
should find a fair amount of SSB activity in
that band. US operators are often heard.
27.555MHz is a well-used SSB calling
frequency, sometimes known as the
Triple-Five, but it cannot be legally used
in this country for transmission as it is
not one of the CEPT channels. Operators
often call on 27.555MHz and announce
that they are listening on another
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June 2022 RadioUser
55
Push to Talk
frequency for replies. If you are lucky –
sometimes this will be in on one of the
CEPT channels.
DXing and Callsigns
As you become more experienced, you will
discover that particular countries favour
particular channels. This is all part of
the skill of ‘DXing’ – long-distance radio
operating: knowing where and when to
listen. Sometimes, you may find yourself
listening to a conversation between two
operators a long way off who have no idea
that they are being heard thousands of
miles away. It can be fun sometimes, to
break in and let them know!
Most operators on SSB tend to use a
callsign rather than a handle. This generally
takes the form of something like 26-CT1233. The ‘26’ is known as the Division –
‘26’ stands for England. Other divisions
that you might find useful to know are ‘1’
– Italy, ‘2’- the United States of America,
‘3’- Brazil, ‘29’ – Ireland, ‘68’ – Northern
Ireland, ‘108’ – Scotland, ‘163’ – Wales,
‘167’ – Jersey, and ‘169’ – Guernsey. You
can see a list of CB Division codes here:
https://tinyurl.com/3vn4ekxu
The rest of the callsign can be almost
anything. Several CB clubs issue callsigns
– such as the ‘Charlie Tango’ group.
https://charlietangodxgroup.
forumotion.com
The group issues callsigns with ‘CT’
in then – the number at the end may be
sequential or a number that has particular
significance to you.
You don’t have to be a member of a
CB club though, to have a callsign, you
could just make something up! Do make
sure that the division code that you use
indicates which country you are in, as CB
operators like to ‘collect’ countries that
they make contacts with – so it is good to
make it obvious where you are operating
from.
QSL Cards Galore
Some CB operators (and amateur radio/
‘ham’ operators too) like to exchange QSL
cards (Figs. 2-4).
Whilst I can partially understand the
attraction of this, to commemorate very
special contacts, I think the days of
swapping QSL cards for each contact
should be in the past. Environmentally
and cost-wise, this is quite expensive.
However, I am also keenly aware that for
some people, QSL cards are a major part
of the hobby.
In my view, though, the days of ‘the final
3
4
courtesy of a QSO is a QSL’ are long gone;
so, unless this is part of the hobby you
want to explore more, you should not feel
compelled to exchange QSL cards with
people you have contacted. If you find this
interesting, you may find it worthwhile
looking through the vintage QSL cards
which are available to buy on websites
such as eBay.
So there we are; that was a bit of a
whistle-stop tour of how to get started on
CB. I hope it’s given you some ideas and
perhaps if you were thinking of trying out
CB, it might help you along the path a little.
If you have any questions though, please
don’t hesitate to get in touch and I will do
my best to help.
CB Radio On the Air
Perhaps to help inspire you a little
more, John L from Devon, who uses the
callsign 26-OP-222, has been busy on
the air and has been making some great
contacts since I wrote the last column.
John mentions contacts with Brazil,
Uruguay, Trinidad, Timor Island, Kuwait,
Bali, Venezuela, Thailand, Mongolia,
Dominican Republic, French Guyana
and Malta. It is an impressive list by any
stretch of the imagination. Well done
John and keep up the good work. Any
other CB operators are welcome to send
in details of interesting contacts they
have made – I would be delighted to
share details in this column.
That’s about it for this month – I’ll be
back next month with another Signals
from Space column, and, in two months,
I will offer more on Push to Talk: I will be
exploring using hotspots with analogue
radios and hopefully, there will be news of
a new handheld transceiver from Icom.
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56
RadioUser June 2022
History
Scott Caldwell
Scottandrew.caldwell@yahoo.co.uk
A
dolf Karl Heinrich Slaby (18491913, Fig. 1) is sometimes
regarded as the ‘German Marconi’
who introduced the technological
wonder of wireless telegraphy to the then
German Empire. His work, and that of others,
instigated a race to develop a version of
the Marconi’s system, intended solely for
the commercial and strategic benefit of
the German Empire.
The Early Years
Slaby’s background was humble; his father worked as a bookbinder. At secondary
school, Slaby had already developed a passion for mathematics and technology. He
pursued this in his further education, and he
enrolled to study mathematics and mechanical engineering at Berlin’s Gewerbeakademie
(Academy of Commerce).
Unlike ‘pure’ academic researchers, Slaby
combined theoretical thinking and practical
experiments. He campaigned hard to establish the first chair of electrical engineering at
the Kӧniglich-Technische Hochschule (Royal
Technical University) in Berlin. For the next
30 years, Slaby impressed his contemporaries with a deep-rooted passion for teaching
and disseminating knowledge. His practical
engineering approach was further emphasised by the publication of his book, Theory
of Gas Engines, which contributed to the
development of the early form of the combustion engine.
Slaby and Marconi
Initial experiments by Slaby had been
confined to the newly-discovered ‘Hertzian
Waves’. However, he had become
disillusioned, on account of his lack
of success in his wireless telegraphy
experiments. This seemed to have been
due, largely, to the limited distances that
the signals travelled. However, in 1897,
the German newspapers reported that the
Italian engineer, Guglielmo Marconi (18741937; Fig. 2) had invented a revolutionary
new system that could transmit Morse code
without the utilisation of a wire. He eagerly
attended Marconi’s demonstration with the
authorisation of his close acquaintance,
Sir William Henry Preece (1834-1917)
who headed the English Telegraph
Administration. The following extract from
Slaby’s research journal reveals his true
feelings regarding Marconi’s breakthrough:
“When the news of Marconi’s first success
ran through the newspapers, I myself was
The ‘German Marconi’
& the British-German
Battle for Wireless
Supremacy
Scott Caldwell discusses the life and work of Adolf
Slaby and his contemporaries and rivals, against
the backdrop of the race to establish an independent
wireless telegraphy network in the German Empire.
earnestly occupied with similar problems. I
had not been able to telegraph more than 100
meters through the air. It was at once clear to
me that Marconi must have added something
new to what was already known, whereby he
had been able to attain lengths measured
by kilometres. Quickly making up my mind,
I travelled to England. Marconi had made
a discovery. He was working with means
the entire meaning of which no one before
him had recognised. Only in that way can
we explain the secret of his success. In the
English professional journals, an attempt has
been made to deny the novelty of the method
of Marconi. It was urged that the production
of Hertz rays, their radiation through space,
the construction of his electrical eye – all this
was known before. True; all this had been
known to me also, and yet I never was able to
exceed one hundred metres”.
Researches and Rivalries
This invitation served to fire his passion for
wireless telegraphy, and it soon returned to
the forefront of his research activities. To
carry out a range of experiments, the waters
of the Havel River near Potsdam were put at
his disposal. Initially, there was outrage in the
local area as Slaby’s experiments were conducted utilising sparks that disrupted all telephone connections.
In June 1897, Marconi impressed the world
again later, sending a signal from a distance
of 16km. Marconi would later regret having
been ‘forced’ to invite Slaby, resulting in years
of commercial competition. This was often
bitter, very intense – and often expressed in
public – as the following example may show:
“The New York Times, Thursday, April 3rd,
1902: “Slaby Replies to Marconi”. Berlin. April
2 – Prof. A. Slaby the electrician has issued
a written reply to Signor Marconi’s statement
that he (Slaby) learned from Marconi what he
knows about wireless telegraphy. The professor says: I have never omitted to mention,
and at every opportunity have acknowledged
that I participated in the experiments carried
on in May 1897, by the English Telegraphy
Department under the direction of Sir William
Preece, with the Marconi apparatus of that
day. But the present system of tuned telegraphy, as Marconi admits, has hardly anything
in common with those primitive beginnings
of 1897. The Slaby-Arco system is not based
on those early experiments. On the contrary,
as Marconi well knows, it is founded on discoveries that I published in December 1900, to
which Marconi referred in his address before
the Society of Arts in these words:
‘I trust that it will not be thought that I desire to minimise in any way the importance of
Prof. Slaby’s work.
The very conspicuous change in Marconi’s
views as contained in his letter published in
New York is something I very greatly regret.”
Marconi also taunted Slaby over the performance of his wireless system. In an interview
in the Corriere Della Sera, he remarked that
“Even the officers of the German warships,
when they are asked which device they have,
reply first: Slaby of course! but then confide: It
is a Marconi.”
Developments and Personalities
Three teams of scientists and engineers
(Table 1) subsequently took up the challenge
to first replicate, and then improve upon,
Marconi’s initial design – all of them are now
household names in German scientific history. However, the generous patronage of
the last Emperor and King of Prussia, Kaiser
Wilhelm II (William II; r. 15 June 1888 until
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June 2022 RadioUser
57
History
ALL PICTURES: PUBLIC DOMAIN, EXCEPT FIG: 5: RF CAFÉ
Fig. 1: Adolf Slaby (1849-1913), the ‘German
Marconi’. Fig. 2: Guglielmo Marconi (1874-1937).
Fig. 3: A research rival: Karl Ferdinand Braun
(1850-1918). Fig. 4: Von Arco on the cover of the
October 1930 issue of the US magazine RadioCraft. Fig. 5: An Adolf Slaby Commemorative
Birthday Stamp dating back to 1974.
his abdication on 9 November 1918), as well
as the practical support of the German Navy
provided Slaby with a significant advantage
over rival researchers and groups.
A series of successful experiments in the
summer of 1897 led to the order to manufacture wireless equipment. This would circumvent Marconi’s patented designs as they were
not granted in Germany. The first two years,
1898 and 1899, of the process that ensued
were very prolific as Slaby and his research
associates filed a total of five patents, which
separated their designs from the Marconi
system more clearly.
Karl Ferdinand Braun (1850-1918, Fig. 3)
was born in Fulda on June 6th, 1850. He studied at the Universities of Marburg and Berlin,
where he graduated in 1872. In 1895, he was
appointed Director of the Institute of Physics
in Strasbourg. Whilst at the institute, he managed to obtain a professorship which enhanced his academic standing; this allowed
him to focus on his research passion of cathode rays. He subsequently invented the first
cathode-ray oscilloscope, which became universally known as the ‘Braun Tube’.
Braun Tubes and Geopolitics
The ‘Braun Tube’ would become an essential component in the mass production of
television sets in the 1930s. Braun began his
wireless telegraphy research within a few
months of Slaby. His work was initially confined to the private sector, where he acted
as a consultant for three prominent citizens
of Strasbourg.
The scope of his activities was centred on
finding a scientific explanation for the concept of ‘hydro-telegraphy’ which facilitated future research relating to radio waves.
Success was universally measured by transmission range and Braun followed Marconi’s
lead by utilising longer wavelengths and increasing output power at the transmitter.
Braun also addressed the issue of limited
antenna capacity, by coupling it inductively to
a second, closed, resonance circuit. He subsequently protected his intellectual property
rights with a German Patent number 111578,
1898. Further financial investment was obtained from a banker from Giessen and the
chocolate manufacturer Ludwig Stollwerck
(1857-1922) from Cologne. Together they
2
1
established a wireless technology firm,
the Gesellschaft fϋr Drahtlose Telegraphie
Professor Braun. Stollwerck was a keen promoter of new technologies, and he developed
the first chocolate vending machine.
[‘Stollwerck’: it’s what the editor’s childhood
memories are made of – Ed.].
To make the venture financially sustainable they attempted to contact shipping and
insurance companies. However, the venture
soon experienced financial difficulties, and
Braun wished to solely focus on his scientific
research rather than commercial matters. In
1901, Braun published a series of research
papers on wireless telegraphy, under the title
Wireless Telegraphy Through Water and Air.
The 1909 Nobel Prize in Physics was
shared between Marconi and Braun for their
contribution to the development of wireless
telegraphy. Some historians have questioned
the rationale behind this decision by the
Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences, claiming that it was based on external geopolitical factors, rather than scientific merit. The
historian Riccardo Chiaberge, in his work
Wireless, concludes that ‘Undoubtedly, in the
eyes of the world that miracle had an Italian
name and surname: Guglielmo Marconi. At the
same time, it would have been unwise to upset
that other William, the Emperor of Germany,
a powerful and troublesome neighbour of the
Scandinavian rulers’.
Telefunken – The Company for
Wireless Telegraphy
Disagreements between AEG (‘Aus Erfahrung
Gut’ = ‘Good from Experience’; Slaby) and
3
Siemens & Halske (Braun) came to a head
when Kaiser Wilhelm II personally intervened.
Wilhelm II feared a Marconi global monopoly of wireless telegraphy that would put the
German Empire at a strategic disadvantage.
Slaby’s former research assistant, Georg von
Arco was appointed as technical director.
The arrangement between AEG and Siemens
& Halske called for Telefunken to focus on
solving the technical problems and developing the professional invention of components for wireless telegraphy. This strategy
would ensure that wireless telegraphy would
be commercially and strategically exploited
to its fullest potential, networking the growing German Empire. Telefunken also had access to existing supply chains as the devices
were manufactured by the parent companies
who specialised in the delivery and installation of the wireless equipment.
By 1914, Telefunken had developed into a
global organisation represented in 39 countries (Table 2).
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History
Lead Scientist
Position
Research Associates
Adolf Slaby
Professor of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering,
Technical College of Charlottenburg
Georg von Acro
Martin Tietz
Ferdinand Braun
Professor of Experimental Physics – University of Strasbourg
Mathias Cantor
Jonathan Zenneck
Adolf Koepsel
Siemens & Halske
Carl Rode
Table 1: Main German scientific teams at the time.
Count Georg von Arco – The
Forgotten Radio Pioneer?
Court Georg Wilhelm Alexander Hans Graf
von Arco (1869-1940; Fig. 4), to give him his
full name and title, has largely been forgotten by history. Acro was born into a traditional aristocratic family in Großgorschϋtz (then
Upper Silesia, Prussia). From a very early age
onwards, he was drawn to machines, and he
rejected careers in medicine and the military.
The testing of experimental wireless telephony
set in 1906, greatly upset Arco as the technicians under his supervision failed to notify him
of their research. He even complained that this
research was not officially sanctioned work of
the laboratory technicians.
However, the quality of the voice transmissions and the distances bridged led to him authorising them additional time and resources
to optimise the sets. In December 1906, he endorsed a demonstration in front of representatives from the German Post Office. They were
the only administration authorised to admit
new forms of communication technology into
the consumer market for mass production and
were, therefore, potential future customers for
this revolutionary set. The transmission range
was 36km, from the Telefunken-Haus in Berlin
and the Telefunken wireless station at Nauen.
Nauen is a key location in German radio history and is still remembered by many today,
as we will see.
Arco had similar talents as his mentor, Slaby,
and he was considered a practical electrician
who processed extraordinary energy as an inventor. Arguably, Arco’s greatest achievement
was the development of a global communications station at Nauen, 20 miles west of Berlin.
In 1909, this famous station was upgraded
with a quench spark transmitter. This facilitated regular and reliable communication with the
African colonies and the High Seas Fleet, making it a vital strategic asset. Arco supervised
further technological upgrades in 1912, with
the installation of a high-frequency alternator
with a magnetic frequency multiplier converter.
After the First World War (1914 -1918), Arco
pursued philosophical opportunities and he
subsequently became the German Monist
League chairman, serving from 1921 to 1922.
In 1923, Arco jointly founded the Society of
Friends of New Russia, causing much controversy within German society.
Further Reading
• Bischi, M. (2017) ‘Who was Karl Ferdinand Braun?’,
Lettera Matematica, 5, pp.253-259.
• Blumtritt, O. (2010) ‘On the History of an Experimental Set for Wireless Telephony’, International
Journal for History of Engineering and Technology,
80(2), pp. 248-267.
• ETHW (Slaby):
https://ethw.org/Adolf_K._H._Slaby
• Fondazione Marconi (Slaby)
https://tinyurl.com/yckt4k8s
• Friedewald, M. (2000) ‘The Beginnings of Radio
Communication in Germany, 1897-1918, Journal of
Radio Studies, 7(2), pp. 441-463.
https://doi.org/10.1207/s15506843jrs0702_15
4
Conclusion
Slaby was extremely active in both the disciplines of science and engineering. He
was a member of the Patent Office and the
Chairman of both the German Association
of Engineers (VDI; Verein Deutscher
Ingenieure) and the Association of German
Electrical Engineers (VDE [old name: Verband
Deutscher Elekrotechniker]).
[In German, ‘Verein’, ‘Verband’ and
‘Vereinigung’ can all mean ‘Association’ – Ed.]
Slaby regularly gave lectures on the importance and responsibilities of electrical
engineers. A brief obituary for Slaby was published in the New York Times on Monday, April
7th, 1913. It ran as follows: ‘Prof Slaby Dead.
Berlin April 6th: Adolf Slaby, the electrical
expert, is dead. Prof Slaby was at one time
a co-worker with Marconi in experimenting
with wireless telegraphy. The German system of wireless telegraphy is based on Prof
Slaby’s discoveries. After his death, Slaby was
laid to rest in the Luisenkirchhof II cemetery
in the Berlin borough of Charlottenburg (of
Charlottenburg Castle fame).
By this time, the two rival great powers of
the era – Britain and Germany – were set on
a collision course, in terms of technologies,
naval geopolitical manoeuvres, and economic and global dominance. In Germany,
many memorials are dedicated to Slaby. In
Berlin, for instance, there is a plaque that contains the following inscription: “Here lived
from 1885 to 1913 Adolf Slaby 18.4.1849 to
6.1.1913, the pioneer of radio engineering,
the first professor of electro-technology at
the Technical University Charlottenburg, joint
5
Year
Revenue (RM)
Net Profit (RM)
1903
195,302
20,000
1904
1,327,318
200,000
1905
2,166,833
240,000
1906
1,797,422
---
1907
1,501,445
---
1908
1,831,540
---
1909
1,620,385
---
1910
3,036,418
---
1911
6,219,231
300,000
1912
8,327,912
360,000
1913
9,151,039
750,000
1914
9,508,817
500,000
Table 2: The Increasingly Rapid Commercial
Growth of Telefunken (1903-1914; ‘RM’ =
‘Reichsmark’ [Currency]).
founder of Telefunken AG”. The memory of
Slaby was also depicted on a stamp issued
by the Federal Post Office Berlin. The first
day of issue marked Slaby’s 125th birthday
on April 18th, 1974 (Fig. 5). Later, some roads
were named after Slaby in two Berlin districts,
Treptow-Köpenick and Marzahn-Hellersdorf.
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June 2022 RadioUser
59
Maritime Matters
Silent Alarms and
Beacons: Anti-Piracy
Measures and Radio
Robert Connolly looks at counter-piracy measures
through the LRIT, AIS and other radio communications
services and provides an overview of the technologies
behind the DGPS and GMDSS transmissions.
Robert Connolly
gi7ivx@btinternet.com
T
his month, I am looking at ship
security measures to counter piracy, armed robbery and other potential threats against merchant
shipping while at sea. In UK waters, threats
to shipping are minimal. However, there are
parts of the world where this is a severe active threat to cargo vessels and even cruise
ships.
There are several things ships do to
keep themselves safe. The relevant
official bodies have recommended
keeping vessels’ Automatic Identification
System (AIS) transmissions – CH AIS 1
(161.975MHz) and AIS 2 (162.025MHz)
– active at all times. This means that, in
the event of pirates taking control of the
vessel, it may be easily tracked. By contrast,
many captains believe that switching off
their VHF AIS helps protect the ship as
the pirates cannot identify and obtain the
position of a potential target. Unfortunately,
with AIS switched off and the vessel being
taken over it makes it very difficult for
authorities to locate it.
https://tinyurl.com/2c3aea2w
Long Range Identification
and Tracking (LRIT)
Although the VHF AIS may be switched off by
some ships, their Long Range Identification
and Tracking (LRIT) remains active. The
LRIT system consists of the following
components: the shipborne LRIT information
transmitting equipment; the Communication
Service Provider(s); the Application Service
Provider(s); the Data Centre(s), including any
related Vessel Monitoring System(s); the LRIT
Data Distribution Plan server; the International
LRIT Data Exchange; and LRIT Data Users.
LRIT data is transmitted from suitably
equipped vessels, via satellite, every
six hours to the DC identified by the
flag Administration. The information
transmitted includes the ship’s GNSS
position, time and identification of the
shipborne equipment. For more information
regarding LRIT, you can visit the website,
below. It contains an overview of the
system and links to the various related
documents.
https://tinyurl.com/24mce7cx
Vessels that transit through areas at high
risk of piracy are equipped with a number
of defensive devices to deter pirates from
boarding. These devices can include the
use of powerful water hoses, enhanced
deck lighting at night, and loud acoustic
devices like an LRAD (Long Range Acoustic
Device).
The LRAD can emit a 150-decibel
directional beam of sound capable of
inducing headaches, panic, and even
potential hearing loss. The device is pointed
towards those attacking the vessel, in an
attempt to force them away and prevent
them from boarding the vessel. Some
shipping companies employ private
maritime security personnel to guard the
vessel while it is passing through high-risk
areas.
Some of these guards may be armed;
while this may provide greater security for
the ships and their crew it also raises issues
as to what constitutes ‘lawful’ use of selfdefence force or ‘homicide’.
Transit Corridors
Another protection system for vessels
operating around high-risk areas such as the
Gulf of Aden, Bab Al Mandeb (BaM), Southern
Red Sea, and associated waters is the use of
the Maritime Security Transit Corridor (MSTC)
system. MSTC consists of the internationally
recommended Transit Corridor (IRTC), the
BAM Traffic Separation Scheme (TSS), the
TSS West of the Hanish Islands, and a twoway route directly connecting the IRTC and
the BAM TSS.
Convoys protected by international naval
task-force vessels may be used to escort
ships through this area. The Combined
Maritime Taskforce website, at the URL
below, provides some information on their
role in maritime security operations.
https://combinedmaritimeforces.com
But what happens when things begin
to go wrong and pirates or terrorists not
only manage to board but take control of
a ship? The COSPAS-SARSAT mechanism,
with the cooperation of the International
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60
RadioUser June 2022
Maritime Matters
Maritime Organization (IMO), has come up
with a project called the Ship Security Alert
System (SSAS).
https://www.cospas-sarsat.int/en
https://www.imo.org
The SSAS is a safety measure for
strengthening maritime security and
subduing acts of piracy and/or terrorism
against shipping. The basic idea here is
that, in case of an attempted piracy effort,
terrorist act, or any other incident which
can be defined as a threat to the ship under
the maritime security, the ship’s SSAS
beacon would be activated.
The SSAS is a type of silent ship security
alarm system that, when activated, does
not issue any audio-visual signal on the
ship or to nearby vessels or security forces.
The alert, in most cases, is first received by
the ship’s owner or an SSAS management
third party. It is then passed to the
ship’s flag state, and the receivers are
obliged to inform the national authorities of
the coastal states where the ship is sailing.
The flag state decides who will be
the initial recipient of the security alerts
from the ships. This may be one or more
parties designated by the flag state as
competent authorities, which may include
the company (shipowner) or an SSAS
management third party.
The silent alarm is activated by the crew
of the ship and the signal is received by
satellite and sent to a ground receiving
station. The ground station then sends
it to the operational headquarters of the
flag state, the vessel owner and the SSAS
provider server.
This then passes to the national law
enforcement agency, which deploys
security assistance to the vessel. In
addition to this, many cargo vessels are
now equipped with a secure area, located
deep within the ship and called a ‘citadel’,
where the crew can retreat if boarded by
pirates. This area often has the capability
of being able to control the main functions
of the ship.
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June 2022 RadioUser
61
Maritime Matters
The Role of NDB Chains
For many years, shipping has made use of
chains of marine Non-Directional-Beacons
(NDB) to assist in their navigation. A chain
usually had six beacons, and each one was allocated an individual (one-minute) time slot, in
a six-minute cycle. In the mid-1990s, the NDB
chain across Europe (and beyond) was largely
closed down, with stand-alone NDBs transmitting from key coastal locations, normally located in a lighthouse.
Those stand-alone transmitters used
a second frequency, normally 500 Hertz
higher than the beacon frequency, which
was used to transmit Differential Global
Positioning System (DGPS) data to enhance
the location accuracy of Global Positioning
System (GPS) transmissions. At that time,
the positional accuracy of GPS was deliberately ‘degraded’, as the system was designed for the military.
In 2000, most marine NDB stations
closed completely, leaving just the DGPS
signals transmitting. A couple of years ago,
the USA also closed many DGPS transmitters, due to the position data no longer being
degraded by the military; therefore, the data
correction information provided by DGPS
transmissions was no longer required for
civil or maritime use.
DGPS in the UK
Nearer to home, here in the UK, Trinity House
launched a consultation exercise to determine
the requirement for DGPS transmission in the
UK. As a result of that exercise, it was found
that all DGPS transmitting stations in the UK
and Ireland would close on 31 March 2022. I
do not doubt that other countries in Europe will
soon follow suit; thus, DGPS transmissions will
become a thing of the past.
For those amateurs who monitor DGPS
signals, this will be a blow. However, for
those who monitor NDBs as a hobby, it will
open up those frequencies to aeronautical
NDBs that operate within that band between
280 and 315kHz. As one door closes another one opens!
In a way, it is sad to see another navigation system move to the history books, in
the same way as Consol, Loran, Decca and a
arnge of hyperbolic technologies.
The Dangers of Jamming
Unfortunately, the accuracy of GPS signals can
be deliberately interfered with, either by the
military during a conflict or even exercises, or
by third parties using (GPS) signal jammers.
The latter might be used illegally by persons
driving vehicles that are equipped with GPS
trackers, usually so that the company owning
the vehicle can see its position at any given
time. Some company drivers do not like this,
as they feel that this is a ‘spy’ in the vehicle that they are using for work. As a result,
some drivers install a GPs jammer to block
this live information transmission and prevent the company from knowing what is
happening regarding the speed and location
of the vehicle.
These jammers are low-power devices
with a relatively short range. Unfortunately,
it has been proven that an active jammer on
a ship can cause severe errors to the vessel’s position, something that could place
the vessel and its crew in danger. A couple
of years ago, several ships in the Black Sea
were affected by GPS interference being
carried out by a foreign military, believed to
have been Russia.
Their position on their electronic integrated chart system was showing the vessel as being many miles inland, well away
from their true position. As the systems on a
ship’s bridge become more integrated, I cannot help wondering what the crew would do
if those systems failed, either through a major fault on the vessel or through an external
source intent on harm.
Integrated Bridge Systems
versus Cyber-Attacks
There are a few alternative basic navigation systems available in such a case. As the
years pass by, a more experienced crew may
be retiring and may be replaced by a younger crew. However, many of the latter may not
have enough experience with navigation in any
form, other than electronic integrated bridge
systems.
It is easy to take modern navigation and
radio communication techniques for granted but occasionally equipment failures do
happen for one reason or another. We have
all read reports of organisations and businesses being subjected to cyber-attacks
and ransomware demands. Shipping companies and their ships are just as vulnerable
to these attacks.
A report entitled Guidelines on Cyber
Security Onboard Ships, published by shipping conglomerates, warned that compromised IT systems caused “a ship with an
integrated navigation bridge suffered a failure of nearly all navigation systems at sea,
in a high traffic area and reduced visibility.”
Unlike land-based systems, maritime vessels face unique challenges due to rotating
crews and remote positions. This renders
them susceptible to digitally-led hijackings,
or ransomware, and the impact can be potentially life-threatening to those on board.
The Global Maritime Distress
Safety System (GMDSS)
For international operational requirements,
the Global Maritime Distress Safety System
(GMDSS) has divided the world into four subareas. These are four geographical divisions
named A1, A2, A3, and A4.
Different radio communication systems
are required to be carried on board ships,
depending on the area of operation of the
vessel. The first case is area A1, 20-30 nautical miles from the coast. This falls under
the coverage of at least one VHF coast radio
station in which continuous DSC alerting is
available. In this case, the radio equipment to
be used must cover VHF, DSC and NAVTEX.
Area A2 should cover up to 400 nm from
shore. However, in practice, it extends up to
100 nautical miles offshore but excludes A1
areas. The mandatory equipment to be used
here is a DSC radio, a radiotelephone with an
MF radio range, plus the equipment required
for A1 areas (above).
In the A3 areas, and excluding the A1 and
A2 ones, coverage is within 70 degrees north
and 70 degrees south latitude and is within
Inmarsat (geostationary satellite) range; continuous alerting is available.
The technology required here consists of
an HF radio and/ or Inmarsat, a system of
receiving MSI (Maritime Safety Information)
data, plus the other remaining systems for
A1 and A2 areas.
Last but not least area A4. These are the
regions outside sea areas of A1, A2 and
A3, essentially the Polar Regions North and
South of 70 degrees of latitude. The radio kit
required here is, once again, an HF radio service plus those required for the other areas
described previously.
There is a requirement for all the above
equipment to be duplicated on the bridge.
Ships that have a secure citadel may also
have some marine radio communications
equipment installed in that secure space
from which to communicate with naval rescue assets.
The IMO requires two coast stations per
ocean region to ensure that all oceans are
covered by HF marine radio communications. Today almost all commercial ships
are fitted with satellite terminals as per the
SOLAS (Safety of Life At Sea) requirements.
https://tinyurl.com/bdf36cw5
This month’s photograph is of the Ro-Ro
Ferry Campania, of the Società Navigazione
Alta Velocità (SNAV). The vessel was formerly known as the Finlandia and is now named
Ani. It is here at its berth at Naples.
That is all for this month, until next time,
“Fair Winds”.
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L
ME
E
IS S
UE
BATT
M
M O R AT
IV
The RAF’s greatest victory commemorated as
never before in your 164-page special edition
The Men : The Machines : The Battles : The Losses
This 164-page special collector’s edition
commemorates the 80th Anniversary of
the momentous Battle of Britain, making
it the perfect gift for any aviation or Battle
of Britain enthusiast.
2
Over
170veles
original
photographs
now in
colour
Qeque veles
| Qeque
| Qeque
veles | Qeque veles
| Qeque
veles | Qeque
THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN IN COLOUR
BACKGROUND TO BATTLE
Left A Hurricane of 501 Squadron
starts-up for an operational sortie at
Betheniville, France, May 1940. Air Chief
Marshal Hugh Dowding argued successfully
against further wastage of the homebased RAF fighter force by sending yet
more fighters to France to bolster a futile
defence.
Right As the unstoppable juggernaut of
German military might advanced across
Europe, the deadly Junkers 87 Stuka divebomber came into its own. However, the
RAF quickly learned how to deal with the
aircraft, and this stood them in good stead
when facing the Stuka during the Battle of
Britain.
Below right Panzer IV tanks roll across
France in May 1940. The German advance
was rapid and overwhelming, and within six
weeks France had collapsed and the BEF
were evacuating from Dunkirk.
The Battle Looms
The Battle of Britain was one of the most iconic battles of the Second World War,
embedding itself indelibly into the nation’s consciousness. Earlier, the Battle of France
could easily have spelled defeat before the air battles got underway in July 1940.
A
fter the outbreak of war in
September 1939, there followed
eight months of what became
known as the ‘Phoney War’.
However, it was clear that large-scale
fighting would ultimately follow, and a
British Expeditionary Force was sent to
France before the end of that year. As
part of that BEF, a large Air Component
was supplemented by an Advanced Air
Striking Force. In total, these air forces
amounted to 25 squadrons, six of which
were Hawker Hurricane-equipped
fighter squadrons. The remainder of the
RAF force in France comprised largely
light bombers and Army Co-Operation
squadrons. Eventually, however, the
‘Sitzkrieg’ became the ‘Blitzkrieg’.
On 10 May 1940, German forces
launched their all-out assault on France
and the Low Countries and what followed
in Belgium, the Netherlands etc. was the
complete collapse of those countries
under the overwhelming might of
German military power. Across France,
German forces rolled inexorably onwards
towards the English Channel and while
the French and British tried desperately
to stem the advance, so the situation
became ever more hopeless.
Predicted Catastrophe
When the fighting had broken out in
earnest on 10 May 1940, aircraft of the
Air Component were in almost constant
combat, and losses had to continually
E OF B R
6
I
IN
TA
L
TT
BA
sand in an hour-glass’ and he predicted
catastrophe if Churchill continued to
help the failing ally. Thus, he sent a letter
to the Air Minister on 16 May 1940, which
may well have saved Fighter Command,
and ultimately Britain, in the nation’s
darkest hour. He wrote:
“I have the honour to refer to the very
serious calls which have recently been
made upon the Home Defence Fighter
Units in an attempt to stem the German
invasion on the Continent … I would
remind the Air Council that … my strength
has now been reduced to the equivalent of
36 Squadrons … I must therefore request
that as a matter of paramount urgency
the Air Ministry will consider and decide
what level of strength is to be left to the
Fighter Command for the defence of this
country, and will assure me that when this
to be called into action, covering the
Losses Mounted
evacuation from Dunkirk and other
level has been reached, not one fighter
At around the same time, another
will be sent across the Channel however
French ports. Inevitably, their losses
momentous decision was undertaken
insistent the appeals for help may be.
mounted. Meanwhile, the battered and
by making Lord Beaverbrook Minister of
depleted RAF units that had been based
“I believe that, if an adequate fighter
Aircraft Production. Aircraft production
in France were withdrawn to Britain.
force is kept in this country, if the fleet
had in fact kept pace with fighter losses
remains in being, and if the Home Forces
Here, they were re-equipped where
incurred during the Battle of France.
are suitably organised to resist invasion,
necessary, and manpower shortages
Soon, production would outstrip losses.
made good so far as possible. Meanwhile,
we should be able to carry on the war
Thus, the availability of fighters would
single handed for some time, if not
RAF Fighter Command readied for what
not become a limiting factor in the air
indefinitely. But, if the Home Defence
was to come. Certainly, the Battle of
defence of Britain.
France was over. The Battle of Britain was
Force is drained away in desperate
However, by 1 June 1940, the RAF had
attempts to remedy the situation in
about to begin.
lost 436 fighter aircraft and almost all
France, defeat in France will involve the
its light bomber force of Fairey Battles,
complete and irremediable defeat of this
along with a considerable number of its
Immensely Powerful
By this time,
the starter
button was the possibility
Facing page Pilots of 19 Squadron are
were not afraid
thatBlenheims.
they were However,
either liarsRAF Fighter
country.””
country.
Bristol
Dowding
had mentioned
pushed afterofa invasion
thumbs-up
fromas
the
to their dispersal point at RAF
a strident
It was a hard-hitting letter, but or foolish. However,
Command
at homejangling
continued to operate
as early
the middle ofdelivered
May
fitter, who unplugged
thethe
starter
trolley,
Duxford ready for operations early one
of the telephone
could mean
Dowding’s words had their effect and
over France
as theseveral
situation worsened.
1940, but by
end of
that month the
clear ofhad
the been
aircraft.
morning during the summer of 1940.
things. Sometimes,
to intense
it Franceensuring it was
while the French still asked for more
In a matter
of sixrelief,
weeks,
possibility
turned into what
Unable to communicate
over
the roar ofIf Hitler Above
could send acollapsed
messageentirely.
to ‘StandNow,
Down’
fighter squadrons to be sent to France,
it .only remained
appeared to be
probability.
was Their relaxed look perhaps
Merlin engine,
the his
pilot
and
Other times,for
it called
toand
readiness,
concealing the tension, these Hurricane
such appeals were rejected. However,
Britishpilots
forces,
some units the
of the
to impose
will
onrigger
the British people,
exchanged
thumbs
up
signals,
the
rigger
pilots
of
501
Squadron pose for the camera
and
then
to
the
heart-pounding
order:
further squadrons of Hurricanes were
French army, to evacuate via Dunkirk
then he could apparently only do so
slapping hisby
pilot
on thethe
shoulder
‘SCRAMBLE!’
deployed over France, but they remained
in what was Operation ‘Dynamo’. RAF
crossing
EnglishtoChannel andduring the summer of 1940. All of them
convey reassurance
he
Years afterwards,
veterans ofatthe
Battle
sawTo
action. Several of them shot down
based in the UK.
Fighter Command
home
continued
dictatingand
his good-luck
terms fromasWestminster.
leapt from the wing. As he jumped, the
of Britain told how they hated the sound
enemy aircraft and some of them were
aircraft was already rolling, and the rigger
of a ringing telephone.
killed.
dodged out of the way of the tail-plane,
On the order to scramble, there
7 was
what it was they were intercepting. It
buffeted by the slipstream which was
a mad rush by pilots to their allotted
may have been an instruction along the
kicking up dust and grass. Getting out
aircraft where the fitter and rigger were
lines of: “MITOR Squadron, ANGELS
of the way, he was hit by a blast of hot
ready and waiting: the rigger on the wing
18, Vector Two-three-zero. Fifty Plus.
exhaust gasses. Now, the aircraft gathered
ready to help in his pilot, and the fitter
BUSTER.” Listening in, the other pilots
speed ahead, into wind, bouncing and
standing by with the starter plugged in on
could interpret these coded instructions:
rocking across the grass airfield. Others
the starboard side of the engine. Heaving
“41 Squadron to climb to 18,000 ft on a
careered along around it, in the organised
himself into the cockpit, the pilot went
heading of 230 degrees. Fifty plus enemy
chaos that was a squadron scramble.
through a number of tasks: helmet pulled
aircraft. Maximum cruising speed.”
Getting airborne, the pilots
on, oxygen plugged in, radio jack-plug in
concentrated on keeping station as
its socket, magneto switches ‘on’, Ki-Gas
they selected ‘Gear Up’, closing the
cylinder priming pump given a couple
Mentally and Physically Draining
cockpit canopy while listening out
of brief strokes and thumb ready on
Settling into the climb, the pilots
for instructions from the CO or flight
the starter. Meanwhile, leaning into the
automatically slid into section order
commander who was talking to the
cockpit, the Fitter helped the pilot with
and the preferred squadron formation.
Sector Operations Room and garnering
his parachute harness straps, then his
Meanwhile, the CO or flight commander
instructions as to heading, altitude and
Sutton seat harness.
concentrated on setting course as the
M
UE
COM
EM
be made good from squadrons based
in Britain. The Commander-in-Chief of
RAF Fighter Command, Air Chief Marshal
Hugh Dowding, had already stated as
early as September 1939, that if he was
expected to defend Britain’s skies, then
he would need 52 fighter squadrons.
At that time, he had only 32 under his
command and was told it would be
impossible to produce the number he
required. However, efforts would be
made to provide him with a further eight.
During the fighting in France,
increasing numbers of fighter squadrons
were sent across the Channel, urged on
by desperate appeals from the French
Prime Minister, Paul Reynaud. Dowding
saw his resources ‘slipping away like
THE RAF FIGHTER PILOT
THE RAF FIGHTER PILOT
19
other pilots concentrated on what
was going on in their cockpits: oil
temperatures and pressures, fuel state,
oxygen contents checked and selected
to ‘On’, microphone not on ‘Transmit’
(this could effectively block all other
transmissions), straps tight, gun-sight
‘On’ and illuminated, straps tight and
canopy firmly shut. A surprising number
would carry out a little good luck routine
like feeling for a lucky charm, or even
crossing themselves.
Now, the workload was high, and still
they needed to concentrate on formation
keeping while permanently keeping
a wary eye open for the enemy and
quartering the sky in a relentless search.
A moment of relapse could litterally spell
death. The squadron ‘Weaver’, winding
from side to side, kept a rather more wary
eye open than the rest, as the squadron
got closer by the second to their quarry.
Brief instructions might crackle through
the headphones: ‘Close up Red 2’ or, on
receipt of further instructions from the
Fighter Controller: ‘Turning to Port. Go!’
Meanwhile, pilots fiddled with the
radio tuner, struggling to tune and retune their wireless sets in a constant
battle to receive and properly understand
the messages. Sometimes, a squawk
of static drowned out everything,
sometimes resulting in one section
haring off suddenly, upwards or
downwards, the rest of the squadron
watching in bemusement and puzzled
because they received no transmission,
or else just couldn’t understand what had
been said. Meanwhile, constant juggling
of the throttle setting with the left hand,
and judicious adjustment of position
through the control column and rudder
pedal inputs, were all necessary just to
keep station. It was incredibly hard work,
and mentally and physically draining.
By now, the squadron was ‘on oxygen’,
masks clamped securely to pilot’s faces
as cold began to permeate the cockpits.
Now, with all the hard work of take-off,
formation flying and getting to altitude,
came further nervous tension with
realisation that the enemy were near.
Then, a tight knot of fear returned as
the gunsight was checked and the SAFE
and FIRE ring on the gun button turned,
ready, to the FIRE position. Goggles
pulled down. And then the shout:
‘BANDITS! Ten o’clock, above. Coming
down now! Break, break, break….’
Chatter Of Gunfire
Suddenly, to avoid the ‘bounce’ of
fighters coming out of the sun, the
squadron had dispersed in a pre-ordered
plan. Now, the enemy fighters were
among them. This time, there was no
Facing page Although posed for a news
cameraman, the squadron telephone
orderly shouts instructions for a ‘scramble’
as pilots lounge in the dispersal hut. The
smartly dressed officer is Duty Pilot – the
pilot rostered for ground admin tasks such
as recording take-off and landing times
etc.
Above It was not unusual for aircraft to
return damaged after an engagement
and with pilots wounded. This brandnew Spitfire had just been delivered to
602 Squadron at RAF Westhampnett
when it was hit by cannon shells from a
Messerschmitt 109 in a combat on 18
August 1940. The aircraft was written off
and Flight Lieutenant Dunlop Urie wounded
in his feet.
chance of a well-ordered textbook:
‘Number One Attack’. Instead, it was
every man for himself, but with ‘wing
men’ desperately trying to maintain
station and protect their section leader.
Now, the pilots were climbing and
hanging on their props, the sun glaring
and blinding as they turned, all the while
listening out and looking out. Now,
there were shouts: “Behind you Blue
3!”, permeated by chattering gunfire.
A cacophony of shouts and static
made communication unintelligible.
One pilot may be drawing a bead on a
21
SS
SPECIAL COLLECTOR’S EDITION
F BRITA
IN
CO
THE BATTLE OF BRITAIN IN COLOUR
EO
“Praise where due. This is the best
magazine available which
I have read - I am very impressed.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading each chapter
and it was written in such an easy style.
It covered every aspect and I was
saddened when I reached the end.”
ORA IVE I
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