Radio User 06.2021

IT’S BACK!
THE RALLIES GUIDE RETURNS
June 2021 £4.99 www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
REVIEW 2
Double the fun

The RFinder B-1 Dual Band
DMR 4G/LTE transceiver
REVIEW 3
REVIEW 1
HF RECEIVER
The Belka DX miniature short wave ‘Vine’ tuning...
Vine Antennas’ off-centre
receiver is put through its paces AS-OCF-404-HP Fed Dipole
REVIEW 4 NEW GEAR

The Sandstrøm Internet The solar digital radio
Bluetooth DAB Radio perfect for daily use
How does this relatively unknown Plus details of all the other new
brand measure up to the big boys products released this month
Summer Listening | MW-DXing | History of QSL Cards | Scanning Memories

Oliver Lodge | The Princess Victoria Disaster | Vintage Equipment | Yeovilton Display until 24th June 2021
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• Unit 1
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• PO6 1TT
Index
Contents Favourites Reviews Features News Profiles
Cover Story
ISSN 1748-8117 24 The Belka DX
May 2021 Vol.16 No 6 Mini HF Receiver
On sale: 27th May 2021 Clint Gouveia returns to RadioUser to offer a review
Next issue on sale: 24th June 2021 of the currently most talked-about miniature HF
RadioUser radio firing up the DX community: The Belka DX
Warners Group Publications plc portable receiver.
The Maltings, West Street
Bourne, Lincs PE10 9PH
www.warnersgroup.co.uk
Tel: 01778 391000 27 Scanner Memories
Editor and Reminiscences
Georg Wiessala
[email protected] We welcome back Anne Reed, who takes a semi-
Designer nostalgic look at the scanners, accessories and
Mike Edwards
[email protected]
aerials she has owned, before describing her current,
improved, shack setup.
Advertisement Manager
Kristina Green
[email protected]
Tel: 01778 392096
30 Airband News
David Smith pays a virtual visit to Yeovilton and up-
Production Manager
Nicola Glossop
24 dates us on improvements to the new high-intensity
[email protected] runway operations system at Gatwick Airport.
Production Assistant
Charlotte Bamford 6 Subscriptions Page
[email protected] Why not take out a subscription to your favourite 34 Oliver Lodge
Marketing Manager radio magazine? Have each issue safely delivered The editor takes a look at the exciting scientific life
Katherine Brown
[email protected] to your door and never miss out on a feature, and memorable spiritual activities of Oliver Lodge,
Marketing Executive column, news item or equipment review. one of the greatest radio pioneers of all time.
Luke Hider
[email protected]
Publisher 7 News and Products 40 RFinder B-1
Rob McDonnell AirNav RadarBox coverage, AN-SOF aerial software Tim Kirby reviews the RFinder B-1 dual-band DMR 4G/
[email protected]
upgrades, Abbree folded aerials, a CCrane solar LTE transceiver/smartphone offering a comprehen-
Technical Help radio, and the Global Radio Guide for summer; plus, sive overview of the unit’s setup options, key func-
We regret that replies to technical queries
cannot be given over the telephone. all the latest news and radio trends (see also: pp. tions, and various user scenarios.
Any technical queries by e-mail are very 23, 39, 50, and 59).
unlikely to receive immediate attention
either. So, if you require help with 44 Digital Radio Review
problems relating to topics covered by RU, 13 Bookstore Kevin Ryan has tested the new Sandstrøm Internet
then please write to the Editorial Offices,
we will do our best to help. The RadioUser bookshop is growing all the time, Bluetooth DAB radio with Spotify Connect; read his
Book and back issue orders and it offers you the latest radio books reviewed verdict regarding the radio’s main characteristics and
Send your completed form to: here, as well as general radio reading, and our its practical use.
RadioUser Subscriptions Dept popular archive CDs.
Warners Group Publications plc
The Maltings, West Street
Bourne, Lincs PE10 9PH 14 Book Reviews
This publication is
David Harris assesses a book on military comms
printed by Warners
01778 395111 and regimental history and peruses a thrilling new
autobiography by a popular radio host
SUBSCRIBE TO RADIO USER
IT’S BACK! THE RALLIES GUIDE RETURNS
For the latest offer call

16 Emerging Issues in Radio
June 2021 £4.99 www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
REVIEW 2
01778 395161 In the first of her new two-part mini-series, Chrissy

REVIEW 1
Double the fun
The RFinder B-1 Dual Band
DMR 4G/LTE transceiver
REVIEW 3
Pay just £3.92 an issue. Brand appreciates the art and history of QSL Cards,
HF RECEIVER
See page six for details. examining when and why they were produced, and
The Belka DX miniature short wave ‘Vine’ tuning...
Vine Antennas’ off-centre
receiver is put through its paces AS-OCF-404-HP Fed Dipole
REVIEW 4 NEW GEAR

The Sandstrøm Internet The solar digital radio
Bluetooth DAB Radio perfect for daily use
How does this relatively unknown Plus details of all the other new
brand measure up to the big boys products released this month
Summer Listening | MW-DXing | History of QSL Cards | Scanning Memories

Oliver Lodge | The Princess Victoria Disaster | Vintage Equipment | Yeovilton Display until 24th June 2021
Buy a digital edition at how they continue to be popular.

www.pktmags.com/ru-subscribe21
20 Medium Wave DXing Today
Keep up to date on Facebook Scott Caldwell delineates the state of the medium
www.facebook.com/radioenthusiasts
wave DXing hobby, assesses how this traditional
Follow us on Twitter radio pursuit has changed and shows how it can
@REnthusiasts benefit from SDR technology.
34
Sign up to our FREE email newsletter at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk

4 RadioUser June 2021
Editorial
Welcome
A Special
Review Issue
Georg Wiessala
[email protected]
H
ello and welcome to
the June 2021 issue of
RadioUser. Our News
and Products pages, and
especially our reviews this month –
of which there are more than usual
47 – reflect particularly well the many
evolving branches of our hobby, as well
47 The International Radio Scene as the rapid technical development of
Chrissy Brand picks programmes for summertime- new receivers and accessories.
listening and focuses on broadcasts and podcasts In this context, Clint Gouveia takes an
about the media, before recommending some in-depth look at the miniature radio on
unmissable global radio programmes for this month. everybody’s lips at the moment. In our little gems and witnesses of radio history.
main review feature, he is putting the In a similar vein, Scott Caldwell diversifies
51 TV & Radio Past & Present Belka DX HF Receiver through its pac- this month, to speculate on the past, present
Keith Hamer and Garry Smith dig out some remark- es, with astonishing results. Moreover, and future of the medium wave DXing hob-
able early radio tech, profile a lesser-known TV Tim Kirby has tested the new RFinder by, looking at how SDRs are taking it to new
graphic designer of the past and comment on the B-1 dual-band DMR 4G.LTE transceiv- heights, even as more MW stations in the UK
BBC and the TuneIn app. er/ smartphone; turn to page 40 to see are, sadly, disappearing.
what he has found out about this great Finally, since I have always been fascinat-
54 Rallies and Events multi-purpose device. ed by Oliver Lodge, I am including a piece on
With one eye on the development of a changing What is more, in this month’s Digital this outstanding radio pioneer, who was able
Covid-19 UK post-lockdown situation, we reprise our Radio article, Kevin Ryan takes a clos- to reconcile science with spirituality, engi-
monthly coverage of forthcoming radio meetings, er look at the Sandstrøm Internet/ neering with the ether.
rallies and swap meets. Bluetooth DAB Radio with Spotify. In our other regular columns in this issue,
And last but by no means least, Keith you can find out about comms at Yeovilton
56 Aerials Now Rawlings, in his Aerials Now contribu- and Gatwick, a treasure-trove of summertime
Keith Rawlings provides a detailed analysis of the tion, offers his expert opinion of the per- listening tips on international radio, vintage
Vine Antennas AS-OCF-404-HP off-centre Fed Dipole, formance of the Vine Antennas AS-OCF- radio and television technology, the Princess
which is useful for both hams and SWLs. 404-HP off-centre end-fed dipole, from Victoria disaster and many other exciting ra-
the points of view of both radio ama- dio-related subjects.
60 Maritime Matters teurs and short wave listeners. N.B.: From this month onwards, we are
Robert Connolly remembers the Princess Victoria Add to this our regular book reviews, once again publishing Rallies information.
disaster, discusses the recent blockage of the Suez and I hope you will find that there is no The very latest updates to our listings are al-
Canal and imagines the scenario of witnessing an shortage of evaluation, testing and as- ways found on the Radio Enthusiast website.
emergency call when listening. sessment this time. Make sure you check our website regularly
In our other key features, Anne Reed and – most importantly – please let me know
returns to RadioUser to share a life- what you would like to see appear there.
time’s fascination with scanning and Finally, please note the correction detailed
airband monitoring, including a look at on page 50 of this issue. Take care.
all the radios she has loved before.
Furthermore, in her first of two fea-
tures bridging art, international rela- Georg Wiessala
tions and technology, Chrissy Brand Editor, Radio User Magazine
56 investigates QSL cards, those desirable www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
Why not visit our new online bookshop at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/store

June 2021 RadioUser 5
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Analysis Program
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and quote
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Telephone lines are open Monday to Friday 8am-6pm and Saturdays 9am-5pm.
Prices above are applicable to UK Direct Debit only. See website for EU and Rest of World Subscription Offers.
Review Review
Senhaix 8800 Bluetooth

Dual Band Handheld
Did you know?

Tim Kirby GW4VXE Tim Kirby GW4VXE takes a look at a dual-band
[email protected]
handheld that is colourful, includes a torch and can
be programmed from your Smartphone!
T
here are any number of dual-band
handhelds available these days,
some of them available really
cheaply. What’s so different about from your phone and Bluetooth the details
this one and why might you find it of inter- between your phone and rig. This is a nice
est? I’m going to try to answer that below. touch if you want to make some changes
For the features and specifications as sup- to the programming on the fly – maybe you
plied by the manufacturer, check out the find a CTCSS code is wrong on a memory
sidebar on the last page of this review. and you don’t have a PC and programming
cable with you. I don’t use an Android mobile
First Impressions phone but I was able to download and install
The first impression on unboxing the radio is the App onto a Network Radio, that runs
of colour! The rig is a bright orange and has Android and establish communication be-
a rubbery, chunky feel to it, which makes it Because
tween the two, so that was great. Because
feel as though it’s a good match as an out- the Network Radio has a very small screen,
door radio for walking. Add to that the fact it wasn’t great for programming the 8800 up
that the bottom of the radio is given over to but I was able to prove the principle. If you
a torch, which can either provide white light have a regular Android mobile phone, you 1 2
or flashing red, white and blue – definitely
handy for those evening dog walks. It’s a
good torch too!
won’t have any problems at all.
When I first looked at the rig there was
no app for an iOS device, so it was off to
I had a quick look to see if the excellent
CHIRP software would ‘talk’ to the 8800, but
SMA-F connection.
Something that I found a little odd with
Fig. 1: The front panel of the 8800.
Fig. 2: Two PTT buttons – enough to confuse the
NEW SERIES WORLD OF TWO-WAY RADIO
I can hear some tutting at the back about the PC for programming for me! There’s no it does not – at least at the moment. the rig, which I have noticed on some other reviewer!
this being PW not Practical Dog Walker! programming cable supplied with the 8800 The great news now, though, is that there models recently, is that it has two PTT but-
Alright, so what about it as a radio? As it but I had a look and the connection seemed is an app for iOS devices. Go to the App tons. You have a PTT for each of the two ‘star/space’ locks the keypad. The rig has a
arrived, the rig was in memory mode with the same as the Baofeng UV-5R for which I Store and look for SHX8800 and download it VFOs. Until you get used to this, you may, voice prompt too, which I tend to turn off, al-
some non-amateur-band frequencies set had a lead. The programming lead uses the onto your iPhone/iPad. Switch on Bluetooth like me, hit the PTT, start talking and then though I know this is a vital feature for some
up. I could see that the radio had both VFO Prolific PL-2303 chip and, as I’d just had a on the 8800 and then go into the app on your wonder why your QSO partner is not hearing users. I turned it off in the software but man-
mode where you can enter the frequency Windows update on the machine, natural- iOS device. You should see ‘Walkie Talkie’ or you! PTT Button 1 is larger than PTT button aged to turn it back on, inadvertently from
you want to use and memory mode. Long ly the lead and drivers were not recognised a similar name available as a Bluetooth con- 2, so you might want make sure that most of the keypad. I’m not sure what I pressed!
press the menu key and you can toggle be- (sigh), but we can’t blame the 8800 for that. nection. You should then simply be able to your activity happens on VFO 1. There’s an FM radio built in, which covers
tween the two modes. It’s in the instruction If this happens to you, as it almost certainly read from the 8800 and see the configura- Audio from the rig was pleasant to lis- 76-108MHz. It seemed pretty sensitive and I
book, which is adequate but basic. will at some point, there are some excel- tion data on your phone. You’ll find there’s a ten to and transmitted audio reports were was receiving Irish stations quite adequate-
My first test then, was to put the rig into lent instructions on how to back-date your screen of data for each memory channel – a good – thank you to Martin GW3XJQ and ly from here in West Wales. You can enter
VFO mode, put the receiver on 430.950MHz Prolific USB drivers back to version 3.2.0.0, little different to the usual spreadsheet style Steve GW7FBV for their reports through the required frequency from the rig’s key-
and listen for EI7MLR, some 85 miles
away across the water. I was delighted to
which will resolve the problem. Try this web-
site:
presentation on a PC – but it works well with
the phone’s user interface. Make whatever
the GB3SP repeater. The receiver seemed
to work alright for everything I tried. I men-
pad, just as you would in the amateur bands.
I started off by saying that the rig had a
April 2021 £4.99 www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
note that within a few minutes, the receiv- https://tinyurl.com/vy4tcrm changes you need to – or enter a new chan- tioned that I programmed up the rig with the ‘rugged, outdoorsy’ sort of feel to it. The vari-
nel. Save the configuration (the app calls it
YOURS New products and

er chirped into life. There’s an on-screen Having done that, the rig connected up AO-91 satellite and I was able to hear it quite ous sockets are protected by plastic covers,
S-meter by the way, which isn’t terribly well through the USB cable and showed as a a ‘case’) and you can then write it back to adequately on an overhead pass. I’m sure if which fit quite well, so the rig will probably
calibrated, so don’t expect to use it to give COM port in the PC’s Port Manager. I down- the 8800. Simple and very effective! I spot- things were quiet, you could probably make comfortably survive a walk in the rain, al-
meaningful reports. The display is a quite at- loaded the programming software from the ted a couple of places in the app, including a QSO through the satellite, using the sup- though I’m not aware it has an IP rating un-
TO BUY innovative software
RadioUser is also available as a digital

tractive colour display that is easy to read. Moonraker website and installed it onto the ers (bear in mind that the 8800 ‘only’ has the app icon where Chinese text is displayed plied antenna. like some of the more expensive handhelds.
PC, pointed the program at the appropriate 128 memories anyway) it’s no problem and rather than English, despite the language be- The menu key gives access to various
Programming the Rig COM port and was immediately able to read I quickly had four or five repeater channels ing set to English, but I did not experience basic controls: squelch, power,wide/nar- Charging the Rig
The next thing I wanted to try to do was from the rig. programmed up and written back to the rig. any problems as a result of this. row, busy lockout, time out timer under the The 8800 comes with a drop-in charger,
to program up some memories. This is The programming software works fine al- For interest, I also programmed up a couple ‘Radio Set’ menu item as well as the ability which can be powered by either the sup-
where you have some options. If you are though it’s reasonably basic. You can’t copy of channels where I could listen to the AO-91 On the Air to change CTCSS, channel display, frequen- plied mains charger or a USB charging lead.
an Android mobile phone user, there’s an and paste between entries and you can’t satellite (145.960MHz down/435.250MHz The 8800 comes with a reasonable antenna cy search and Bluetooth. A long press of the Even better, if you are out and about, in the
App that you can download (I grabbed it import channel information as a comma up). It’s a nice feature to be able to set trans- – although I suspect putting an after-market ‘hash/up arrow’ key starts the rig scanning car, perhaps, you don’t need the drop in char-
from the Moonraker website), which allows separated variable (CSV) file, for example. mit and receive frequencies on different antenna on it might give you some bene- through your memories. Long pressing 0 ger – just the USB charging lead. There’s a
you to manage the programming of the rig But for programming up a few local repeat- bands – something not possible on all rigs. fits. The antenna you use will need to have a gives you a voltage reading. Long pressing micro-USB socket on the back of the rig, so
Sign up to our FREE email newsletter at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk Enter our competitions at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/competitions
46 PRACTICAL WIRELESS May 2020 May 2020 PRACTICAL WIRELESS 47
edition! Download issues directly to your FIRST TEST

The role of radio
How wireless lifelines are
vital in times of change
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The role of radio
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An Introduction to Digital Radio | Covid & Radio (Part II) | Elisabeth Alexander
GCHQ Book | Lifeboat Transmitters | Radio for the Brain | TV & Graphic Design Display until 29th April 2021
An Introduction to Digital Radio | Covid & Radio (Part II) | Elisabeth Alexander
001 April front.indd 1 15/03/2021 08:59

What’s new in the world of radio News
What’s New
Have you got something new to tell our readers about? If so, then drop a line to [email protected]
ST
OP
PR
ES
S!
AirNav RadarBox
Extended Chinese
ADS-B Coverage
Over the past 5 years, RadarBox has seen As of 2021, coverage in the country is over 90%
tremendous growth in ADS-B coverage all over with almost all airline routes covered by either
China. They’ve grown from less than 10 ADS-B Ground-based or Satellite-based ADS-B.
tracking units in 2016 to over 200 in 2021. An
increase of 2300% in units, over half a decade. https://tinyurl.com/duzcwv4
A phenomenal growth rate considering China’s www.radarbox.com
strict laws and tight regulatory oversight. [email protected]
AURORAL DUNES: Grandin et al. [2021] present that the underlying mechanism for this banded pearance of the dunes. Using a combination of
new observations of an auroral phenomenon structure is modulation of the atmospheric surface and satellite observations, the authors
referred to as ‘dunes’, which has been photo- density by a horizontally propagating atmos- derive wavelength and propagation speed for the
graphed by citizen scientists over northern pheric bore, following a waveguide formed by dune feature, relating the latter to characteristics
Europe. The features appear as aurorae in terms a temperature inversion detected in the upper of the upper mesosphere.
of their light emission characteristics, but their mesosphere. Auroral particle excitation of the (SOURCE: Mary Hudson, AGU Advances)
structure is more banded. The authors suggest bore’s trailing wave pattern results in the ap- https://tinyurl.com/xjkxb9nd
For the latest news and product reviews, visit www.radioenthusiast.co.uk

News What’s new in the world of radio
A Major Upgrade for

AN-SOF’s Modelling
Simulation Software
There has been a significant upgrade to
the AN-SOF antenna modelling simulation
software (AN-SOF 6). Significant because, for
example, the program now allows for wires
close to (or connected to) ground and radial
ground plane with buried wires (see below).
There are new preset lists of soil/ground
conditions (previously users had to add
this information themselves). Other
improvements include the following:
An Antenna with a Kink
• Improved real-ground calculations. Soil Yes, this was a bit of an ‘impulse-purchase’, but this Abbree foldable aerial caught my eye.
conductivity and dielectric constant affect Marketed as a ‘tactical’ aerial, it is also very tactile. It folds in half and makes sense for
the current distribution (input impedance), situations where other aerials might get damaged, for example when you are out and about. I
as well as the far and near fields. bought the version with an SMA female connector. My purpose was to take my portable scanner
• Wires very close to the ground are allowed. (Uniden UBC125XLT) up the Cumbrian Fells to listen to some activity on the amateur radio
• Wires connected to the ground are allowed. bands. The aerial is designed for 144/430MHz. Models include the AR-148, AR-152 and AR-
Ground connections can be ‘perfect’ or 152G. I was impressed at how well the aerial brought in Airband communications, even when
‘imperfect’. folded over. A nice accessory to have for those post-lockdown outdoor explorations.
• Preset list of conductivities and dielectric https://abbree.com
constants for different soils (good, average,
poor, cities, rich soil, fertile land, sandy,
freshwater, seawater, ice, and so on) RADIOCENTRE: Radiocentre Director of
• Radial wire ground screen with buried External Affairs Matt Payton is being promoted
radials. to the newly created role of Chief Operating
• Dielectric substrate slab of finite size to Officer. Matt will continue to oversee external
model microstrip patch antennas in addition affairs and regulation at Radiocentre and will
to the existing infinite substrate. work alongside incoming Chief Executive, Ian
• There is also now have a Facebook group Moss, on a range of new responsibilities. These
AN-SOF Antenna Simulator Group, which will include supporting the Radiocentre Board
offers further information and user guides. with membership and governance issues,
The new features put AN-SOF above those representing the organisation on cross-industry
packages that use the NEC-2 engine and is a forums and deputising for the CEO. Radiocentre’s behalf of commercial radio, enabling the industry
noteworthy upgrade. advertising and research functions are to speak with one voice to politicians and
(SOURCE: Keith Rawlings) unaffected, with Client Director Lucy Barrett and regulators as well as advertisers. I am delighted
https://www.antennasimulator.com Planning Director Mark Barber continuing to to have the opportunity to carry on contributing
[email protected] report directly to the CEO. Matt told RadioToday: to this work as Radiocentre COO, as both the
“The team at Radiocentre do a brilliant job on organisation and the industry continue to evolve.”
Enter our competitions at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/competitions

Global Radio Guide

(Summer 2021)
This newest edition of the GRG carries on the
CCrane Solar Radio tradition of those before it with an in-depth,

24-hour station/frequency guide with schedules
for selected AM band, long wave, and short wave
The CCRadio Solar is a small digital portable bottom which makes it inherently stable. stations. This unique resource is the only radio
radio that is successful as an emergency The flashlight is above average in brightness publication that lists ‘by-the-hour’ schedules
radio. However, both form and format invite and colour because of the selected high including all language services, frequencies,
you to use this daily. Placed in a sunny quality LED. The hand crank inlaid on the and world target areas for over 500 stations
window it is perfect for the morning news. back is the only visible clue that this is an worldwide. With the help of the GRG, you can
Audio is a surprise, it is accurate, pleasing emergency radio. When the battery is fully tune in to short wave broadcast stations from
and it has a ‘miser-setting’ to conserve battery charged the radio will run about 50 hours or hotspots such as China, Cuba, India, Iran, North/
power in a true emergency. Long-range charge your phone from approximately 50% South Korea, Taiwan, and many other counties.
reception is one of the best in emergency type to 100% level. If you have a shortwave radio receiver, SDR or
radios. Reception is good for the size. (SOURCES: CCrane | James Careless | Radio Internet connection, pair it with this unique radio
The almost brick size depth and unique UV World, April 2021: 18) resource to know when and where to listen to
resistant rubber perimeter is concave on the https://ccrane.com/ccradio-solar the world. The GRG includes listings of DX radio
programs and Internet website addresses for
many of the stations in the book. There are also
AUDIO CONTENT FUND: The Audio Content radio, and so far content has gone out on more entries for time and frequency stations as well
Fund (ACF) has £1million to distribute over than 300 stations, including some of the biggest as some of the more “intriguing” transmissions
the next 12 months as it enters its third year of commercial radio brands in the UK. Small one can find on the shortwave radio bands. Larry
operation. The fund, which is financed by the UK stations and Community Radio stations should Van Horn has also updated his now-famous SDR
Government, has distributed £2.35m since its be formed into networks of broadcast partners. Buyer’s Guide, a must-have compendium, which
launch in 2019, having had its budget increased Bids for broadcast on community radio must helps you navigate through the revolutionary
last year during the coronavirus pandemic. The now come with at least five broadcast partners world of software-defined radios (SDRs), the
next funding round will open on 17th May, with attached, with the guidelines stating that bids digital frontier of the radio hobby. The 16th
decisions published in early August. Subsequent would have ideally more than that minimum, to edition of the Global Radio Guide e-Book
funding rounds will be held in September 2021 help demonstrate a serious level of interest and (electronic book only, no print edition available)
and January 2022. Each round is expected to contribute to requirements on audience reach. is available worldwide from Amazon and their
distribute around £330,000 to independent The ACF will then help distribute successful various international websites at the URL below.
production companies, to make broadcast radio projects to more stations, so they can reach as The price is US$ 8.99.
content which is often too expensive to produce large an audience as possible. www.teakpublishing.com
on a commercial basis. Bids must come with (SOURCE: Radio Today | ACF) https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0938DDK5L
a guarantee of broadcast on Ofcom-licensed https://www.audiocontentfund.org.uk https://tinyurl.com/2vpmenpy

COM AP-95M Compact

Wireless Access Point Dits and Dahs
The AP-95M is a compact wireless access Power Level Adjustment function and This new guide from our friends at CQ Commu-
point, compatible with high-speed Wi-Fi Connecting Terminal Limit function can nications may be a great addition to your radio
standards, that creates a 5 GHz and 2.4 remove interference and can prevent a shack. Within its pages you’ll find chapters on
GHz dual-band wireless local area network reduction in communication speed caused the secret of becoming a proficient CW operator;
(WLAN) with up to 16 SSIDs, using the Virtual by access concentration. The AP- 95M can where and how to ‘practice- practice- practice’;
AP (VLAN) function. The AP-95M can be used automatically set the channel according straight key or paddle; paddle keyers, Iambic key-
as a single access point or as part of a larger to the surrounding signal conditions. You ing, and bugs; contests, events, DXing; operating
network. The AP-95M has been developed can update to the new firmware, or you can QSK; CW filters; signs, signals and procedures;
for Icom’s IP Advanced Radio System and initialise using your PC’s web browser. The tips on taking CW on the road, and much more.
general usage. The AP-95M Wireless LAN AP-95M is compatible with SNMP and the The price to the UK is US$ 29.95.
Access Point has a beamforming function RS-AP3 access point management tool so https://tinyurl.com/8t4s84cf
that can send a signal to a specific terminal. that you can easily manage your terminals.
The MU-MIMO function enables easy access The AP-95M complies with the IEEE 802.11ac
from each terminal. standard. For further information about Awards will be available for those who support
Up to eight wireless LAN terminal groups this product, please visit the Icom AP-95M the event:
can be configured, which can have different product page. • An award for having registered and taken part
VLAN IDs and SSIDs, in both 5 GHz and (SOURCE: Icom UK | Ian Lockyer) in the event. • A Bronze award for having logged
2.4 GHz band. Each virtual AP can have https://tinyurl.com/xwsbpbme a minimum of 5 IAW stations. • A Silver award for
different security settings. An Automatic [email protected] having logged a minimum of 10 IAW stations. •
A Gold award for having logged a minimum of 15
IAW stations. • Awards for SWL will follow the
Radio News registration number which will be listed on this

website.
The registered number needs to be quoted
above requirements • More than one award may
be claimed.
Claims for the awards will need to be made to
AIR AMBULANCE WEEK: This year’s by each station regularly. Included in the list the IAW’s Award Manager by (Geronwy@gmail.
International Air Ambulance Week will take place alongside each registered station will be a com) including an excerpt from the log as proof
between 6th - 14th September 2021, with a focus ‘clickable’ link, enabling those wishing to donate, of a valid claim. The event’s date has been set
on supporting and generating donations for to do so directly to the charity of the service to coincide with the UK’s funding drive week
flying medical services around the world. The they wish to support. The event is primarily for its helicopter ambulance services. Almost
event covers two weekends, giving amateurs intended to help support public donation funded all of these, around 30 in number, are entirely
a great chance to get involved and support the flying medical services, whether part or entirely public donation funded. The event is intended to
occasion. Whilst Amateur Radio Operators / donation funded, though not restricted entirely commence on the fourth weekend of September
Stations are encouraged to promote the donation to those. The location of the special event station annually and is to be run by the same team which
causes, it is requested that any donations can be anywhere you choose to set it up – club, operates the well-established International
generated go to the stations chosen local or home or if you can manage the permissions to Museum Weekends.
national cause. Registration will be mandatory, do it, a public place. No costs will be involved (SOURCES: ICQ Podcast / Colin Butler)
and all stations taking part will be issued a in registering or taking part and a free series of https://tinyurl.com/4rpxzznh

BLUE HERITAGE PLAQUE FOR CHOICE FM: A

blue heritage plaque has been unveiled in honour
of Choice FM, the first and only black radio
station with a London wide commercial licence.
On March 31st, 1990, the station delivered the
first historic broadcast on the famous 96.9FM
frequency. To commemorate its history, the
Nubian Jak Community Trust organised the
unveiling with co-founder and photographer Neil
Kenlock, former director Dr Yvonne Thompson
CBE and Mayor Councillor Philip Normal at 16-18
Trinity Gardens, Brixton South London – the New Warehouse for Moonraker
address that the station launched. During its 23 Moonraker opens a third warehouse, in are just running out of space and with our
year tenure, the station helped to champion black order to increase its stock levels and range continual investment in the future with more
music of all genres and break acts from around to support the next day solutions it offers IT infrastructure including a new website we
the world. The station also covered debates to its many customers. Justin Godefroy don’t see things slowing for the medium to
on current affairs issues that were not covered 2EOJSG Sales Director said, “With the long term”. Call Moonraker and book a visit
by other mainstream stations. Choice FM was lockdown continuing to fuel online sales we for a tour.
awarded several accolades including MOBO
and Sony Radio Academy Awards. In 2004, the
station was bought by Capital and on the 7th of by the AREF funding panel, who were often international societies to ensure the mode is
October 2013, it was rebranded as Capital Xtra. confronted with the desperate and heart- supported for future generations. The initial work
https://tinyurl.com/562723zn breaking circumstances facing the industry’s to set up this new society has been undertaken
freelancers. One successful applicant wrote: by Kevin GW0PUH, Alan G6RBM, Mark MW0RZS,
AUDIO & RADIO EMERGENCY FUND “The moment COVID-19 struck the UK, my John G3YPZ and Simon MW0NWM. The
ALLOCATES MORE THAN £77,000: Organisers employment completely and utterly dried up AMARS is planning to organise a quarterly club
of the Audio & Radio Emergency Fund (AREF) overnight, leaving me with no income whatsoever, newsletter, two annual weekend AM activity
are closing the initiative at the end of its current as I am a freelancer.” Another added: “I cannot events, AM contests and construction events.
funding round after giving out over £77,000. The begin to explain what this means to my son and It also plans to join the RSGB, and other national
Radio Academy created the fund in April 2020, I. Thank you all so much for your help in what has societies based on where our members live. The
to help those in the radio and audio sectors who just been the most horrible year. This will literally first AGM will take place on Wednesday 21st July
were facing hardship because of the coronavirus put food on the table.” AREF is currently open at 19:00 UTC (20:00 BST) on Zoom.
crisis. for its final round, which closes for applications (SOURCES: AMARS | ICQ Podcast)
Since then, 165 grants of up to £1,000 have been on 26th April 2021. Any remaining funds will be https://tinyurl.com/2bzxavah
given to those experiencing hardship or needing held in the Radio Academy’s Benevolent Fund for https://am-ars.org
help to continue working from home. AREF was future needs.
a joint response to the pandemic from The Radio (SOURCE: AREF | Radio Academy) AZIMUTHAL MAP: Use this form (link below) to
Academy and AudioUK, with significant funding https://tinyurl.com/wyujxucy create an azimuthal map for any location on the
from the BBC, Audible, The Whickers, Folder globe. You can customize the map in a variety of
Media, ReelWorld and RadioToday. Their support AMPLITUDE MODULATION ARS FORMED: The ways by changing the options in the web form.
built on the existing Radio Academy Benevolent Amplitude Modulation Amateur Radio Society Especially useful if you have the means to rotate
Fund and was supplemented by £20,000 of has been formed. The society aims to promote or align your aerial for optimum reception. The
generous individual donations through the the use of the original voice mode using vintage, map generator is the brainchild of Tom, NS6T:
Show’s You’re Listening initiative. modern and ‘home-brew’ equipment on all the (SOURCE: Bob Houlston G4PVB, Volunteer
The need for AREF was made clear in the amateur bands available. The group will also Correspondent)
hundreds of applications received and assessed strive to promote the AM mode to national and www.tinyurl.com/4yhjnj24

A NEW RETRO SOUND RADIO STATION FOR

SOUTH EAST WALES: A new commercial radio
station covering South East Wales is launching
next week called Retro Sound with a full line up
of experienced presenters. Nick Wright will host
the breakfast show, with the rest of the schedule
populated by Gregg Upwards, Paul Robinson,
Chris Moore, Tom Green, Leighton James, Diane
Marks, James Amos, Matthew Morrissey, Mark
Andrews and many more. CEO Ian Francis told
RadioToday that Retro Sound is more about
the style of radio that they’ll make. He says:
“We’ll have a personality presentation where the
audience can interact with the on-air team in real-
time as we won’t have any voice-tracked shows, it
will all be live. Retro Sound aims to become a part
of the communities it serves by getting out and
about, attending local events and at some point
hosting our own. We are also setting up an old-
style action desk service so if a cat goes missing,
a car is stolen or a fundraising event is happening,
listeners can contact the station and we will
publicise it.” Radio Travel News will be providing a
dedicated custom bulletin service, whilst jingles
are provided by Ignite Jingles. The service will
be online initially but aims to be on DAB by the
end of the year. A local sales team is in place and
media partnerships are being established. Ian
adds: “We are currently promoting Retro Sound
everywhere we can but by far the most reaction
is to BEX, our Retro Sound car that is currently
touring South East Wales playing an eight min
promo on loop via a PA system. Reaction has been
so strong that residents from the old Swansea
Sound TSA are asking us to expand and include
their area. We hope to do this in the future, but with
a local service for them.” News Special just before 12.10 pm, whilst Adrian particular focus on the 80s. Regina Beck, Head
(SOURCE: Radio Sound Radio) Chiles on 5 Live announced the news himself of SWR1 Baden-Württemberg & Prof. Roland
https://retrosoundradio.com at 12.07 pm before handing over to the network Welling, Head of SWR1 Rheinland-Pfalz, said:
feed. Things didn’t go quite according to plan “The sound design fits like a perfect English
OBIT MODE FOR HRH : Radio stations across on the BBC World Service, with the presenter tailor-made suit for SWR1. The compositions are
the UK entered obituary mode following the attempting many times to hand over to a special modern, contemporary and absolutely coherent!
announcement by the Royal Family regarding the news report resulting in some confusion for We are thrilled with the creative, professional and
death of The Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip. listeners. Most BBC stations stayed in network uncomplicated collaboration with Wisebuddah”.
Bauer, Global and the BBC commenced their mode till late afternoon Friday […]. Wisebuddah’s Managing Director, Phil Tozer,
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after the news was released just after midday on projects we have ever undertaken, so watching it
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At BBC Radio 2, Vanessa Feltz, sitting in for Rheinland-Pfalz (broadcasting from Stuttgart (SOURCES: Wisebuddah [sic] | RadioToday)
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Roger So Far ...
The first 100 years of the Royal Corps of Signals
As the advantages that from ever more complex equipment became
apparent the need for a technical arm of the Army, who specialised in
communication systems, became apparent. The Royal Corps of Signals
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the development of communications; delivering them in a variety of £27.00
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Created to counteract
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joined the BBC as a introduction, with everything to the airwaves to reshape the Service became a cauldron
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Book Review
David Harris
[email protected]
David Harris reviews a regimental

history that excels in its depiction
of the development of military
communications technologies, and
he evaluates a new radio presenter
autobiography.
Roger So Far
When I first read about his book I was
not that excited by the idea of reading a
regimental history. However, I was very
pleased when the book arrived to find
that it was a profusely illustrated, clearly
written book. It is not just about the
Signal Corps but also includes some very
good explanatory articles about radio,
telephones, computers, the internet, and
so on.
Besides, it can be viewed as a history of
British military campaigns over the last 100
years. This is a book that will be of great
interest to those who have served in the
Armed Forces but also to those with an
interest in military history and how the army
has adapted to new technologies.
Military Communications
The Corps was not founded until 1920
but the first couple of chapters give a good
account of the early history of military
Technologies and a
signalling, which is the need to pass
information and commands effectively
between troops and their commanders.
Diverse Radio Career
Military communications go back to ancient
Greece, and to the man who ran the 26 miles 6,000 Royal Engineer signallers. This had The period from 1945 – 1970 was one of
from Marathon to Athens bringing news of risen to 70,000 by the end of the conflict. great technological change.
the battle of Marathon (490BCE, the origin Motorcycle dispatch riders, field In the First World War, communications
of the idea of a long-distance race). In the telephones and even pigeons were used to had been by Morse code. During the Second
16th Century, beacons were lit on hilltops to communicate between the trenches and World War, AM voice communications were
spread warnings. Headquarters. In 1915, the Fullerphone more prevalent, and by the mid-1950s, the
Later still, in the early 19th Century, was invented by a Royal Engineers officer. VHF Larkspur radio had been introduced for
a system of shutter telegraph stations It enabled telephone signals to be sent use on vehicles. This slowly replaced the No
was established using a semaphore- without fear of interception by the enemy. 18 and No 19 sets which had been widely
type code. This enabled a message to By 1917, some women were sent to France used in the Second World War. The Signals
pass from London to the naval base of to serve as telegraphists and telephonists in were always at the forefront of communica-
Portsmouth in 15 minutes. Morse code the Women’s Army Auxiliary Corps. tions technology, and in the mid- 1960s, they
sent over telegraph wires speeded up By 1920 it was realised that a specialist began using satellite systems.
communications. By 1870, the ‘C’ Telegraph Corps was required, and the Signals were The period from 1970 to 1995 embraces
troop of the Royal Engineers was founded formed. They were active in the interwar the transition from analogue to digital.
as the first dedicated signals unit. By 1900, period in conflicts in Ireland, India and It also covers the very important and
the telegraph, telephone and radio had Burma. In 1939, the Corps had grown to dangerous role the Corps had in Northern
revolutionised communications. In the Boer 37,000 men and by the end of the Second Ireland, setting up and maintaining
War (1899 -1902), field telephones were World War, some 150,000 men were communications networks across the
used extensively along with the Heliograph signallers. Amongst their numbers were province. Some 16 signallers were killed in
(a device to enable signalling by use of the the comedian Sir Norman Wisdom and the action during this period. Initially, the army
Sun, which was used up until the Second Conservative cabinet member Geoffrey used commercial Pye and Storno portable
World War, 1939-1945). Howe. radios but by 1980 these were replaced by
But it was the First World War (1914- There is a brief mention of SIGINT and the Clansman radios.
1918) that revolutionised the need for good role of Bletchley Park and the decoding of The last 30 years of the Royal Signals are
communications. In 1914, there were some Enigma. characterised by their key role in satellite,
See our great book and magazine offers at www.radioenthusiast.co.uk/store

Book Review
John was ambitious and got his break

in television by presenting a regional pop
music programme. He was attached to
BBC Birmingham and produced local
programmes. At times, he felt that he could
have been a national television presenter,
and he packed a lot of variety into his career.
For example, he worked in London for the
television programme, Inside Information,
but then went back to regional shows.
Overall, John carved out a 20-year career
with BBC Radio 4 working in a production
capacity on shows such as Punters, Down
Your Way, Any Questions and Any Answers.
He also worked for the BBC Natural
History Unit in Bristol.
Eventually, BBC cuts caught up with him,
and he was made redundant as a radio
producer. However, he was re-employed
as a presenter with BBC Radio Derby, a
town which he knew well. John then moved
Roger So Far…The First 100 Years This is the BBC Holmes Service back to BBC Radio Nottingham where he
of the Royal Corps of Signals by John Holmes, MBE presented a Sunday show for more than 10
(edited by Nick Kendall-Carpenter) Self-published, 2020. years. He returned to regional television and
The History Press, 2020. 288 pp. 341 pp. Hbk, £20 (+ postage). presented many shows in which he showed
Hbk, £30. ISBN 9780750990509 BUY
FROM US!
ISBN 9871838539085 viewers various walks in the East Midlands
www.thehistorypress.co.uk See page 13 www.johnholmes.co.uk area.
In recognition of his career in
microwave, internet and IT systems, right up After completing a degree in Mining broadcasting and work for local charities,
to the present date when they are involved Engineering he undertook some computer- he was awarded the honorary degree of
with cyber warfare applications. aided careers guidance, which suggested a Doctor of Letters by the University of
The book lists over 300 contributors, a career in studio management. Although Nottingham. In 2017 he was awarded
has a comprehensive bibliography, lists of studying on a scholarship from the National an MBE. Finally, in 2019, he completed
abbreviations, Glossary and much more. I Coal Board he gave up mining and was tak- 50 years of service with the BBC, an
think it succeeds both as an official history en on by the BBC in 1969 as a trainee studio achievement few other staff members ever
of the Corps but also as a highly readable manager in London, thus beginning a 50- achieved.
history of modern warfare. I think this book year career in broadcasting. I strongly recommend this book to
could be quite inspirational to a young John had got married and made anyone who is contemplating a career in
person with an interest in technology. Nottingham his home and was not keen the media, who works for the media or has
on living in London. He was transferred to ever aspired to work in radio. In terms of
The Holmes Service BBC Birmingham where he worked on The readability, entertainment value and as an
John Holmes (b.1947) was a BBC radio Archers radio soap opera and recorded insight into the world of broadcasting it is
presenter and producer for 50 years. He many bands who performed live sets for the up there with David Jensen’s book and Jeff
is best known for his work with BBC Radio BBC. In 1970 he began work as a studio as- Zycinski’s Red Light Zone (Radio User, June
Nottingham, but this is much more than a sistant with BBC Radio Nottingham and pre- 2019: 49).
book of purely local interest. John is a fine sented his first radio programme – a chil- David enjoyed a very full and fulfilling
writer, and he captures many interesting dren’s request show. career with the BBC. He remained
moments from his varied career with the John proved to be a real ‘all-rounder’, committed to his family who stayed in
BBC in this autobiography. presenting an innovative progressive Nottingham, and he eventually returned to
John grew up in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex music show, Extravaganza, as well as a his adopted home town.
where he developed an early interest in Saturday afternoon sports programme. Although the book covers every aspect
both pop music and jazz. He enjoyed The mid-1970s were a difficult time for of his life I would encourage David to write
listening to Radio Luxemburg and the many BBC local stations, as they were in direct another book, perhaps something on the
pirate stations that could be heard in the competition with the newly-launched local craft of broadcasting, which is something
Thames estuary during the mid-1960s. He commercial radio stations. In Nottingham, he has experienced both as a broadcaster
did well at school and was encouraged to this was Radio Trent which opened in 1975. and a producer. John had a regular slot on
study engineering at university and opts Coincidentally, both David Lloyd (author BBC Radio Nottingham on Sundays but
for Mining Engineering at Nottingham. At of several radio books) and David Jensen, had to stop broadcasting during the recent
University he got involved in student drama, author of the excellent, Kid Jensen for the lockdowns.
saw many bands, plays rugby, regularly Record (Radio User, May 2021: 14) both He is still employed by the BBC as a
went to the theatre and met his wife. worked for Radio Trent. researcher.
Follow us on Facebook @radioenthusiasts and Twitter @REnthusiasts

Emerging Issues in Radio
SLAVA ON UNSPLASH
Chrissy Brand
[email protected]
T
he issuing of QSL cards by radio
broadcasters commenced about
a century ago. Its purpose was to
ascertain how well a station sig-
nal was getting out to its target
audience. Reception reports were requested
from listeners for much of the 20th Century
because this was the best way for radio
station engineering and technical depart-
ments to determine whether their signal was
reaching audiences. Could transmissions be
heard clearly and strongly, did the frequen-
cies used suffer from interference, be it from
another station on an adjacent or the same
frequency, or electrical interference?
Amateur radio hams started using QSL
cards as a means of verification of two-way
contact with each other. Amongst the first of
the hams to do so was W.E.F. Bill Corsham, 1
2UV. He used a QSL card in 1922 when oper-
ating from Harlesden. In the 1970s CB radio
enthusiasts also established this friendly
way of interactive connections.
“QSL?” is the Q Code for, “Do you con-
Planting Flags in
Listeners’ Hearts
firm receipt of my transmission?” while ‘QSL’
(without a question mark) means “I confirm
receipt of your transmission.” Broadcasting
stations have followed this method.
In the Beginning
Propagation conditions often carried AM In the first of a two-part mini-series, Chrissy Brand
signals beyond the region of the world they delves into the past, present and future of QSL cards,
were aimed at (Fig. 1). Listeners and radio
enthusiasts, DXers (‘DX’ meaning ‘long-dis- and examines both their design and use in broadcasters’
tance’) reported these interesting anoma- publicity strategies.
lies and began to collect QSL cards from
whatever stations they could. From national
broadcasters in nearby countries to lower- for which areas of the world, and interna- teners in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Hong Kong,
powered domestic radio stations located tional agreements meant stations were less South-East Asia, and Central Asia to monitor
thousands of miles away. likely to interfere or share frequencies too BBC frequencies that were being jammed:
A station signal reaching the target area close by. 5970, 9410, 12065, 12095 and 15310kHz.
and audience was, of course, required to en- Yet it was still a good method of gain- I doubt they received a QSL card or station
sure that a station met its brief and mission. ing knowledge. Working at the BBC World memento in return, more likely a thank-you
In the case of state-funded broadcasters, Service in the 1980s, I was lent a Grundig e-mail, at best.
this could be to satisfy a government that Yacht Boy by colleagues when on my travels.
their messages and world views were dis- In return, I had to check the short wave fre- Building a Brand
seminated far and wide. For private broad- quencies in the places that I visited. Back in the ‘golden age’ of short wave, most
casters using short wave, they also wished Listener input is still required, both SINPO stations nurtured and rewarded listeners.
to build audiences and entice advertisers to Code measurements and views on pro- They set up clubs and encouraged the most
buy airtime. gramme content. Smaller broadcasters us- dedicated listeners to become ‘monitors’.
ing short wave relays, such as Channel 292 This stimulated regular and reliable report-
Useful Reception Reports and the Shortwave Service need to know ing, as well as creating loyalty to a station.
For many decades, engineering depart- how well their signals are reaching audi- In turn, a listener may better digest a state
ments of radio stations relied on listeners’ ences, which are much smaller than those broadcaster’s government policies on inter-
reception reports. This faded once of international broadcasters (Fig. 2). national affairs.
engineering departments had amassed dec- Consequently, listener observation is still Just how well a new or alternate set of fre-
ades of practical information. They knew useful. For example, in January 2021, the quencies and broadcast times was being ob-
pretty much what frequencies worked best BBC Transmission Department asked lis- served in parts of the world was fundamen-

RADIO PRAGUE CHRISSY BRAND
Fig. 1: A new worldview will be opened up for you

through international broadcasters.
Fig. 2: From Radio Prague’s 2020 QSL series of
transmitter sites. This is the one at Liblice.
Fig. 3: QSL cards of ancient sites can help to
publicise stations and invigorate tourism.
Fig. 4: Radio Sweden QSL cards have covered
both transmitter sites and philately.
tal for a station to measure how ‘listenable’

a certain frequency was. After all, the better
and clearer the signal was received, then the
greater was the potential for an audience to
hear the programme content.
I recall being a member of the Radio
Budapest Short Wave Club. It produced a
monthly magazine, full of tips and DX infor-
mation. In return, you sent four reception re-
ports a month. Other stations required many
more reports than that from monitors, re-
warding reliable monitors with baubles, trin-
kets and special QSL cards.
Stations such as Radio Cairo, the Voice 3
of Indonesia and many other medium-sized
broadcasters needed to ensure their pro- source of key interaction for many stations. These interactions still occur. Susan
grammes reached listeners, and also to cul- The most loyal listeners became well known Owensby of The Sound Kitchen on Radio
tivate that audience. These stations were to presenters at the station and an on-air and France International has a good rapport with
amongst the many to produce QSL cards off-air rapport was created. When I worked her worldwide audience in the RFI Listeners’
featuring historic artefacts or buildings, for at the BBC World Service Information Centre, Club. Sadly, the programme is now online,
instance, Radio Tashkent’s 2003 Samarkand we had many listeners who wrote regularly rather than on the air, and prizes have re-
series (Fig. 3). Statements like this show- with all kinds of details, and it was easy to placed QSL cards.
case a country’s rich history and can lend a develop a kind of ‘pen-pal’ relationship – al- There are similar strong connections on
certain ‘gravitas’ to the programme content beit on a professional basis – with some. Radio Taiwan International and other sta-
aired. The late Denis Ironman, a DXer and tions, from international broadcasters to
RadioUser reader, told me how he corre- small scale private broadcasters like Radio
Engage and Influence sponded with and travelled to see staff at Emma Toc. Sending out QSL cards and other
Many times, for a station’s language service Radio Prague in the 1970s. This building of souvenirs is a simple way of keeping a lis-
to survive, or to avoid financial cuts, it was friendships, starting through conventional tener’s loyalty.
important to have ways to measure in how listener-presenter interactions was by no Rewards in the shape of QSL cards, pen-
far a station was engaging with, and even in- means uncommon. He gathered many sou- nants, pens, mugs, stickers, drinks coast-
fluencing, its target group. venirs and a collection of QSL cards from ers, T-shirts, bags and even tapestries was
Although governments usually deter- many stations. once a commonplace practice; it survives to
mined a service’s budget and the decision It is important to remember that, even if this day.
of which languages a broadcaster should governments are using state broadcasters The advent of the ‘internet age’ meant
transmit in, all radio station departments as propaganda tools, this agenda is often by- broadcasters could reach wider audiences
wanted as many staff as possible, to reduce passed and superseded by the emergence and promote messages more cost-effective-
the workload and to increase the variety and of genuine friendships between individuals ly and efficiently. It may be a less ‘romantic’
quality of programme output. and broadcasters, DX clubs and station lis- medium, but this is understandable, even
This bank of keen listeners became a tener clubs. though many DXers still correspond regu-

CHRISSY BRAND
References
• The QSL Card, history and usage:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/QSL_card
• The Q Code:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Q_code
• QSL Posts on The SWLing Post:
https://swling.com/blog/tag/qsl-cards
• Stig Hartvig Nielsen, ‘Reception Reports and
QSLs in the Age of Remote SDR’, RadioUser,
4 March 2021: 58-59
• Ronald W Kenyon, QSL – How I Traveled the
World and Never Left Home, Kindle Direct
Publishing, 2020
• The Sound Kitchen with Susan Owensby, RFI:
www.rfi.fr/en/susan-owensby
• London Calling, Britain, the BBC World
Service and the Cold War, by Alban Webb,
Bloomsbury Publishing, 2014
4 • La Voz de Galapagos 1981 QSL at QSL Card
Museum:
larly with stations they started listening to guages) about programming, which you https://tinyurl.com/hdunw48a
decades ago. had to complete. You posted back the • La Voz de Galapagos on short wave:
whole card to the station, whereupon Radio https://tinyurl.com/5775wdx8
QSLs and Programme Content Sweden’s QSL department would verify, sign, • Terje Isberg QSL Card Collection:
The programme content was – and still is – add a Radio Sweden International sticker https://tinyurl.com/hyjsc358
fundamentally a propaganda weapon for a and post it back to you. This was the most • Celestino Piatti art:
state broadcaster. It usually reflects, or is at worthwhile type of listener interaction, as https://tinyurl.com/3cynhy5r
the very least sympathetic to, government specific questions were asked and could www.facebook.com/CelestinoPiatti
foreign policy and its world view. then be better analysed and measured by an • Switzerland is Good for You and NRK:
Although technical details of reception audience research department than a selec- http://qsl.philcobill.com/blog/?m=201508
reports and the SINPO code was valua- tion of random comments could.
ble, as broadcasters evolved, they required The four questions that were asked on
better-quality feedback on what audiences this Radio Sweden QSL card were probably ing contact and forging loyalty from a for-
thought about programmes. With so many those which all broadcasters still seek the eigner to the country they were listening to.
rival broadcasters for a short wave listener answers to: “What do you like best about our This building of relationships is common-
to choose from, it was vital to produce more programmes?”; “What’s missing in our broad- place within all radio stations, even today,
engaging content. casts?”; “How often do you listen”, and “why with commercial stations forging links with
Not much has changed content-wise, do you listen to us?” the listener through phone-ins and competi-
in the entire short wave era. ‘DXing’ and My final QSL card from Radio Sweden tions.
‘Mailbag’ programmes remain extremely came in 2003, consisting of a plain postcard, In the 1970s and 1980s, car stickers were
popular, along with tourist information and with information stamped and signed. It was a popular ‘freebie’ that stations, particularly
culture, from classical and traditional music indicative of the station’s farewell, to be- local stations, gave away, creating a vehicle
to the latest pop, rock and dance acts from a come an online-only service (Fig. 4). for free advertising. This was also a way for
given country. Today, Radio Slovakia International re- a loyal listener to announce the station they
A common complaint from broadcasters fuses to send a QSL card unless the recep- supported, almost like following a particular
has been that too many listeners were DXers tion report author has included detailed sporting team.
who tuned in simply to get a QSL card. This comments on what they thought of the These days, the equivalent station loyalty
was of use to the engineering and transmis- programme and how what they would like is shown by listeners following, and interact-
sion departments but less so for the pro- to hear. This has helped shape content, al- ing with, their favourite stations on social
gramme-makers. though I fear the audience is not as large as media and online.
Language services required innova- it deserves to be. It all helps builds the listener’s station
tive measures to counteract this. In the affinity with a radio station. This, in turn,
late 1970s and early 1980s, Radio Sweden Nations as Imagined increases the likelihood of responding
changed tack in their QSL policy when they Communities favourably to a commercial station’s
produced a range of do-it-yourself QSLs Many international broadcasters played sponsors and advertisers. In the case of
card. The top half contained an image and their national anthem at the start or end of a non-commercial state broadcasters, it helps
Swedish facts on the front and space for a broadcast. Perhaps this is the audio equiva- form a positive image of that station, and of
regular reception report on the back. The lent of planting a country’s flag on a summit, the culture the station reflects.
bottom part asked questions (in five lan- or in the listener’s heart and mind, establish- I am certainly not alone in visiting

countries based partly on information I The representation of ‘tradition’ and QSLs with strong graphic design elements;
garnered from its radio broadcasts. ‘folklore’ is another way to tell a nation’s tying together the power of radio across the
A model suggested by the BBC Board story to a listener. Norway’s state airwaves with elements of Swiss life, from
of Governors in 1946 became typical for broadcaster NRK ran a range of 1980s the mountains to the cities.
the most international broadcasters, “to QSL cards depicting regional costumes. In the 1970s ORF ran a series of QSLs that
present listeners a straightforward, honest Many other stations follow this route. ABC featured contemporary Austrian art. These
news bulletin, a review of [the country] Radio Australia issued a wide range of QSL are among my favourite personal series of
and its institutions, scientific and cultural cards. These often depicted wildlife, with QSL cards.
achievements and sporting events and to some 1990s cards showing colourful native A series of QSLs card issued by Danish
elucidate in a varied manner and from as birds such as the Forest Kingfisher, Regent Radio symbolised the Danish National
many fields as possible the [country’s] way Bowerbird and the Blue Wren. anthem, Der er et yndigt land (“There is a
of life.” Many QSL cards are works of art in their lovely country”). The series was first issued
In this model, QSL cards became a nice, own way. In-house design teams could in the 1980s and still being sent to listeners
and eminently collectable, enticement for produce imagery that projected a radio in the 2000s.
many. station, and the country it represented, as This Danish Radio QSL series comprised
being forward-looking and modern. In the four cards, painted by artist Sofie Bagger,
Nature and Art early 1960s, Swiss artist Celestino Piatti that fitted together in a single image of green
Although some of an international station’s (1922-2007) was commissioned to design hills, apple trees and sunflowers. The QSLs
audience are ex-pats, the majority is made a QSL card for the Swiss Shortwave Service. were sent out to listeners but there was no
up of numerous nationalities, many of whom The graphic design or transmitter towers guarantee you would not get a card that you
commence with little knowledge about and wires crisscrossing on a bold colour already had. This, of course, was a way to
the station (and the country) they have background, with the Swiss flag, projected a encourage listeners to tune in regularly and
tuned to. There are many exotic stations strong visual image. contact the station.
too: for instance, in the 1970s, La Voz de la A QSL card collector would surely have Next month, I will have a more in-depth
Galapagos was heard in the Tropical Bands. received the message that Switzerland look at QSL cards issued by current-day
Their QSL card featured a giant tortoise, a was a thriving and dynamic country. In that broadcasters and free radio stations,
parrot and crabs. This raised the profile of era, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation investigate QSLs and conflict, and
the Ecuadorian-administered islands in the progressed from black-and-white QSL appreciate those QSL cards issued for
short wave community. cards of transmitter sites to some striking commemorative and sporting events.
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Feature
Medium Wave
broadcast stations – most noticeably by
RNE, COPE, and SER Radio, broadcasting
from multiple transmitter sites.
It has been suggested that the Medium
DXing – Does it Wave spectrum would benefit from a

Single Frequency Network (SFN), offering
the following advantages:
Have a Future? Systematic reduction

in co-channel interference;
More frequencies to allocate to new
stations: community, regional, and/or
Scott Caldwell surveys the current state of the Medium national broadcasters (it is estimated
Wave DXing hobby, looking at how the disappearance that 80% of frequencies are unsuitable for
regional broadcasting); and
of some stations can enhance other aspects of the Ease of use for listeners wishing to
hobby, with the aid of the new breed of SDR receivers. receive the best quality of signal relative to
their geographical location.
SCOTT CALDWELL European broadcasters have also
Scott Caldwell argued that financial viability plays a major
[email protected] role in determining the future of Medium
Wave. It is reported that shutting down
T
he world is continuously evolv- the France Inter Medium Wave service, for
ing to meet demanding politi- example, has saved a remarkable figure of
cal, economic, environmental, US$1.5 million in operating costs.
and technological changes and The Dutch public service broadcaster
respond to the humanitarian NPO reports that terminating their
crisis of the global COVID 19 pandemic. Medium Wave services has generated
This raises the following question: Is there a saving of US $1.3 million over a fiscal
still a place in modern society for tradition- year. NPO also claims that its listener
al Medium Wave DXing? 1 demographics are changing fast, as
In recent times, the hobby has younger listeners do not own a receiver
attempted to evolve to meet Amongst the more high-end aerial that has medium wave functionality.
these new dynamics. alternatives, you will, of course, find the
This has been reflected in the growing excellent Wellbrook ALA1530 (Fig. 3) loop Transatlantic DX with an SDR
popularisation of e-QSL cards, replacing antenna, which currently retails at £252 In terms of monitoring Stateside signals,
the ‘traditional’ hard-copy varieties that for the model ALA 1530 Aluminium. you might wish to compile, over time, a
arrive via the post office. This benefits Plus, there is the slightly more exotic longer-term log. This can offer a basis for
both the Dxer and the station in obtaining Reuter series of magnetic indoor loops, for comparison of the changing dynamics of
real-time QSL cards and reception example, the Reuter RLA-3, which I have the medium wave broadcast band.
reports that are deemed vital for station used, on and off, more recently (Fig. 4) In recent years, the remarkable
engineering auditing. This aerial provides excellent possibilities of Software-Defined Radio
Previously, the hobby was based around results across the Long, Medium, and (SDR, Fig. 5) have been instrumental in
high-end equipment, which prohibited Short-Wave bands. shaping the future of MW Dxing. I was
younger listeners from pursuing the https://tinyurl.com/uc9bazsf initially very sceptical about owning
magic of DXing. But the market is now and operating an SDR, questioning, like
more accessible to DXers with a more Band Dynamics many others, whether this was still an
limited budget. and Spanish Armadas ‘acceptable’ form of the hobby. For me,
Therefore, a simple Tecsun AN200 It is often argued that the poor sound there is still a magical feeling to physically
indoor loop antenna (Fig. 1) can quality is a fundamental reason why tuning a traditional communication
achieve quite remarkable results, given many European nations (France receiver to a weak station.
advantageous atmospheric conditions; and Germany, for example) have However, the recording functionality
it comes with a modest retail price of systematically terminated their Medium and coverage of modern SDRs is truly
£39.95, for instance from Waters and Wave broadcasting. The dynamics of amazing, allowing the DXer to monitor
Stanton/Nevada. the band are vastly different during a large slice of the bandwidth cake over
https://tinyurl.com/4kc6ps5t daytime and night-time. In Europe, the some time. This will significantly expand
There are two benchmark stations to Medium Wave is relatively free from co- the scope and enjoyment of the hobby
aim for in the United Kingdom: 590kHz channel interference during daylight because you are simply hearing many
VOCM (St Johns, Newfoundland; Fig. 2) hours. However, at night-time, it is a more stations.
and 1130kHz WBBR (New York) are both very different band with the frequencies Moreover, contemporary SDRs, such
audible after 9 pm in the winter DX season. dominated by a ‘Spanish Armada’ of as the SDRplay, ELAD and AirSpy range

Feature
WIKIPEDIA SCOTT CALDWELL
2 3
SCOTT CALDWELL
Fig. 1: The Tecsun AN200 Indoor Loop Aerial.

Fig. 2: Transatlantic MW DX signal path from
Newfoundland to the UK.
Fig. 3: The author’s trusted Wellbrook ALA 1500
loop. Fig. 4: Using the Reuter RLA-3 crossed-
dipole magnetic indoor loop for MW DXing.
Fig. 5: The SDRplay SDRuno recording feature is a
vital feature for this area of the hobby.
Fig. 6: The Premier Networks Programme Clock.
of radios, and many others besides,

are equipped with a truly remarkable
bandwidth coverage, allowing the DXer
to listen to wreak stations. Table 1
shows a typical example of the current
specifications of some better-known,
hobby-level (mid-range) Software-
Defined Receivers.
The Dynamics
of the Medium Wave Band
The recent closure of broadcast
stations on the MW spectrum is 4
very disappointing. The BBC policy
of reducing its MW output has been A pilot shutdown of some BBC radio in the United Kingdom.
defended as follows by Kieran Clifton, the stations led to over 600 letters of In this context, some domestic DXers
Director of BBC Distribution & Business complaints. Unfortunately, it failed to have reported the reception of KGOW
Development: “The BBC is committed to a make the BBC change its stance; on the (Bellaire) on 1560kHz. These are stations
digital future for radio, and in the past few contrary, its shutdown has gathered pace that were previously rarely heard, due to
years we have funded local DSB expansion, in recent months. the adjusted broadcasts of WFME.
made all local radio stations available on However, developments like this one What is more, a number of US
digital terrestrial TV (Freeview) and we do make room for some interesting stations are required by the Federal
have transformed our online and mobile opportunities to receive more distant Communications Commission (FCC)
offering with BBC Sounds. MW stations that occupy the same to reduce their broadcasting output
“Together with FM (which has recently frequency, thus reducing the co-channel power at night-time (Table 2), in order
been expanded for Radio Wales), these interference that has been such a definite to systematically reduce the problem of
ways of receiving our stations now make characteristic of MW DX in Europe. overcrowding of the spectrum.
up the great majority of listening, and A similar change in the dynamics of The FCC regulates the parameters of
as a result, continuing to transmit these the Medium Wave broadcast band has their operating licence. To manage the
services on Medium Wave would no longer also been encountered in the US. WFME output power of each station, the FCC
represent good value for money”. (Family Radio), New York has recently issues a Table of Approximate Local
Some older UK listeners are outraged ceased broadcasting on 1560kHz, Monthly Sunset Times.
that MW is being slowly eradicated from opening up the frequency for the reception These times determine the operating
the BBC’s regional services. of stations that were previously inaudible times a station should broadcast on until

Feature
it reduces its power and/or adjusts its Furthermore, the X-Band (1610- In the 1950s advertising campaigns
directional transmission antennas. In early 1710kHz) offers the European DXer and media reports proclaimed that the
spring the transmitters will be tethered many exciting opportunities. Here, medium of radio broadcasting had been
to sunset times, but they will still operate North American stations can be copied wounded by the technological advent of
under full daytime power, owing to the without much co-channel interference television. However, over 50 years later,
nominal sunset times issued by the FCC from European broadcasters (except the radio still provides a reliable service
that consolidate sunset times from the various Dutch pirate stations). in terms of quality programming and
middle of spring. My observations so far suggest that the commercialisation.
https://www.fcc.gov X-Band offer the best reception quality In one of my future columns, I will
This offers European DXers a unique during early spring. look at DRM as a possible alternative to
opportunity to hear American daytime A relatively easy station to catch is Medium Wave broadcasting.
stations, within a limited window WPTX on 1690kHz, when conditions SCOTT CALDWELL
of opportunity. are advantageous.

https://tinyurl.com/w6ap3jh7
Expanding the Hobby
Against this background, experienced and Medium Wave
knowledgeable DXers are promoting the Resources and the Future
adaptation of the hobby to all levels of Many practical resources are available
ability and equipment. to both the novice and seasoned MW
You do not need a sophisticated receiv- DXer (see box at the end of this article).
er or antenna to catch North American DX For example, the Medium Wave Circle
stations, and several stations offer good continues in its yearly growth and its
reception opportunities in the UK, subject quest to promote the fascinating hobby of 5
to advantageous receptions conditions. Medium Wave DXing. PREMIER NETWORKS.
The Internet is a great source of infor- Its publication – the Medium Wave
mation and practical tips for the DXer. News has increased in size to ac-
Recently I was struggling to obtain an commodate an impressive 36 pag-
identification of a weak North American es of DX logs supplied from its global
station that was broadcasting the Coast- membership base.
to-Coast programme To enhance the like- The British DX Club (BDXC) is another
lihood of an identification I managed to source of information as regards all varia-
download a Coast-to-Coast Programme tions of DXing across the radio spectrum.
Clock (Fig. 6). In conclusion, Medium Wave DXing
https://tinyurl.com/5d3u58ae offers an intriguing – and often
This useful app indicates when challenging – way to stay in contact
local identifications can be received in with isolated communities. This is never 6
breaks from the nationwide content. more important than right now, given the
Unfortunately, the weak station faded devastating impact of social distancing
out beforehand, leaving one very and lockdown in response to the global Resources
frustrated DXer. Covid-19 pandemic. • Hard-Core DX:
https://tinyurl.com/9p3pcd6
SDR Receiver Specifications Retail Price • Introduction to MW DXing (NZDXL):
Airspy HF+ and HF+ Discovery HF frequency spectrum coverage 9 kHz to 31 MHz. VHF coverage 60 MHz £199.95 https://tinyurl.com/2df76xvk
and 260 MHz. USB Power Supply. Sensitivity -112dBM. No drivers required. • Medium Wave Circle
Plug-and-play on Windows Vista, 7, 8, 8.1, and 10.
(MW News | e-MWN):
SDR Play/RSP Duo The frequency spectrum encompasses 1 kHz to 2 GHz. £235.95 http://www.mwcircle.org
SDR Play RSP dx Covers the entire RF spectrum from 1 kHz to 2 GHz. £190.00
• Medium Wave List:
https://tinyurl.com/ytnkrypf
Table 1: Some SDR Receivers on the Market Today. • Medium Wave.de:
http://www.mediumwave.de/
kHz callsign City State Power QRM UTC • Radio Enthusiast:
780 WXME Monticello ME 5kW WBBM 2200 https://tinyurl.com/hv3mce7f
• Radio World:
1160 WSKW Skowhegan ME 10kW WYLL 2200
https://tinyurl.com/4rdafktt
1280 WHTP Gardiner ME 5kW CFMB 2200 • SWLing Post:
1090 WILD Boston MA 4.8kW WBAL 2215
https://tinyurl.com/59ybxd26
• UK MW Transmitters:
1100 WTWN Wells River VT 5kW WTAM 2215 http://www.mediumwaveradio.com/uk.php
1110 WMVX Salem NH 5kW WBT 2215 • Ydun’s Medium Wave Info:
https://mediumwave.info/news
Table 2: North American Daytime Stations (Q2/2021; courtesy Steve Whit of Medium Wave News).

News
Radio News European Private

BBC RADIO 1 RELAX: A new service has
appeared on BBC Sounds: Radio 1 Relax is
playing soothing noises, including wind and rain.
The BBC says Radio 1 Relax reflects its
Shortwave Stations
commitment to supporting audiences to June 2021
Only legal stations are included. Most stations use 100 to 3,000W of power.
manage their mental wellbeing following the D = Germany, DNK = Denmark, FIN = Finland, NL = Netherlands, NOR = Norway, Irr. = irregular, F.pl.: future plan,
launch of BBC Headroom in 2021. Featuring min. = minutes, Mo = Monday, Tu = Tuesday, We = Wednesday, Th = Thursday, Fr = Friday, Sa = Saturday, Su = Sunday.
everything from ‘sleepscapes’, sounds
stimulating an ASMR (Autonomous Sensory kHz Country Name Transmittersite Schedule(UTC)
Meridian Response) to tips and mixes, the new
3920 NL RadioPiepzender Zwolle Weekends(1600-2400)
stream offers something new and distinctly
different for those looking for moments of calm 3955 D RadioChannel292 RohrbachWaal 24/7
in their day-to-day routines. Radio 1 Relax is the 3975 D ShortwaveRadio Winsen Daily1500-2200
BBC’s second curated stream for BBC Sounds
3985 D Shortwaveservice Kall-Krekel Daily1400-2200
and follows the launch of Radio 1 Dance in
October 2020. 3995 D HCJB Weenermoor 24/7
Both new streams are designed to give young
4900 NL MikeRadio Heerde Alternative to4900
audiences even more flexibility to listen to
their favourite BBC content outside of the more 5800 NL MikeRadio Heerde Irr.– weekends0600-2400
traditional linear schedules. 5880 NL RadioPiepzender Zwolle
(SOURCES: BBC1 | RadioToday )
5895 NOR RadioNorthernStar Bergen Daily0329-2210
https://tinyurl.com/yk7mm9nn
https://www.bionics.co.uk 5920 D HCJB Weenermoor Daily0600-1600
5930 DNK WorldMusicRadio Bramming 24/7

COMMUNITY RADIO MAY SPLIT :Community
radio stations may now offer split services 5940 NL RadioPiepzender Zwolle
within their coverage area on any relay 5970 DNK Radio208 Hvidovre 24/7
transmitters they might operate. Following
5980 DNK RadioOZ-Viola Hillerød We2100-2200,Sa-Su1100-1300
lobbying from the UK Community Radio Network,
Ofcom has informed the stations in the network 5980 FIN ScandinavienWeekendRadio Virrat 1stSaofthemonth(not inMay)
they may now offer separate advertising and 6005 D Shortwaveservice Kall-Krekel Daily0800-1600
identification to distinct communities within
their broadcast areas. East Sussex-based 6005 NL RadioDeltaInternational Elburg Testing
Seahaven FM will be one of the first stations 6020 NL RadioDeltaInternational Elburg Sa0900-1300&Su0600-1700
taking advantage of this new agreement with
6055 DNK RadioOZ-Viola Hillerød F.pl.:Alternative to5980
its recent installation of a 2nd transmission
site in Eastbourne […]. The UK Community 6070 D RadioChannel292 RohrbachWaal 24/7
Radio Network has nearly 100 Ofcom licensed 6085 D Shortwaveservice Kall-Krekel Daily0700-1700(RadioMiAmigo Int’l)
community stations as members. Station
managers meet twice monthly to discuss the 6115 D Radio SE-TA2 Hartenstein Inactive
sector and represent these stations to industry 6140 NL Radio Onda,Belgium Borculo, NL Weekendsonly.F.pl.:Daily0630-1900
organisations, the regulator Ofcom, and other
6150 D Europa24 Datteln Daily0800-1600
stakeholders.
(SOURCE: Ofcom | UK CRN | | Industry Press) 6160 D ShortwaveRadio Winsen Daily1000-1600
https://tinyurl.com/28mk7724 6170 FIN ScandinavianWeekendRadio Virrat 1stSaofthemonth(not inMay)
https://tinyurl.com/4nxpd2c7
7365 D HCJB Weenermoor 0800-1300
DECODING 433 MHZ WITH RTL_433: The 9670 D RadioChannel292 RohrbachWaal 24/7
rtl_433 software program is a generic sensor
11690 FIN ScandinavianWeekendRadio Virrat 1stSaofthemonth (not inMay)
decoder, and it will translate and display a variety
of environmental data. Despite its name, the 11720 FIN ScandinavianWeekendRadio Virrat 1stSaofthemonth (not inMay)
frequency can be defined in the setup. Sensors 15505 NL RadioPiepzender Zwolle Irr.- weekends
can be found on the frequencies of 315, 433, 868,
15790 DNK WorldMusicRadio Randers Sa-Su0700-2000+irr.atothertimes
and 915MHz, depending on your location. In the
UK, 433.92 is the most popular, and so this is a 25800 DNK WorldMusicRadio Mårslet,Aarhus F.pl.:24/7fromlateMayorJune2021
very good place to start.
(SOURCES: MØTAZ; via Bob Houlston G4PVB)
This list is compiled by Stig Hartvig Nielsen ([email protected]) each first day of the month – and is based on details supplied by the various radio stations, the
https://m0taz.co.uk/2019/09/rtl-sdr-fun stations websites and HFCC registrations. The list is not copyrighted and may be published everywhere. Next list will be published on June 1st 2021.

Review
The Belka DX HF Receiver

Clint Gouveia M0OXF Clint Gouveia M0OXF reviews Alex Buevsky’s
[email protected] much-talked-about Belka DX miniature receiver,
investigating this portable unit’s key features and
T
he history of radio technology
is littered with attempts functions, and its performance on the short waves.
to miniaturize short wave
receivers. From the 1950s
onwards, with the introduction In this context, two of these were a big fan of LW and MW. Therefore this is a
of semiconductors, this became much developed in Belarus by Alex Buevsky who serious omission, but not a deal-breaker.
easier, of course. is a radio amateur (EU1ME). The first of https://tinyurl.com/3yt3cu6p
However, it was not until 1988, through these was the rather successful Belka DSP At least the end of the MW band is still
the introduction of the Sony ICF-SW1, that a miniature receiver. available, as is the X-Band which extends
properly capable short wave receiver could fit Later, this was followed up with the new from 1.6 to 1.7MHz and in which I have
in your shirt pocket. Belka DX copied many DX stations over the past 5
Further reductions in size – the best As an aside, both of them were named, it years or so.
of which were, once again, from Sony – seems, after Belka (Белка, literally, ‘Squirrel’), The unit consumes a tiny 0.25mW of power
duly arrived in 1993 with the ICF-SW100, the first Soviet Space dog to return alive. when using headphones. On this basis, the
and then, in 1999, the equally good ICF- https://tinyurl.com/563jk47f battery has sufficient charge capacity to last
SW07. Market forces driving the scaled for 24 hours of continuous use.
production of these types of receivers have Basic Specifications Image rejection is very good at around
diminished considerably with the reduction in The first point to note with this receiver is the 70dB, and whilst I do not have a figure for
broadcasting on short wave. lack of LW and MW bands. The frequency ultimate sensitivity, I can confirm the Belka
However, several low-volume range of this radio starts at 1.5MHz and DX to be a very sensitive receiver, based on
manufacturers are developing products in extends to 31MHz. As many of my Oxford several excellent catches on short wave.
this space for us hard-core radio enthusiasts. Shortwave Log subscribers will know, I am More on that later.

Review
2 3
4 5
The receiver measures 84 x 50 x 20mm charge indication LED for charging the built- Fig. 1: Bandwidth-selection on the Belka DX.
and weighs only 95 grams. in battery. My review unit came with a built-in Fig. 2: The (SSB) high cut-off frequencies
speaker, the audio of which is directed out of available.
First Impressions the back of the unit. Fig. 3: The small tuning dial.
There is not much in the box – the receiver, Fig. 4: The internal speaker.
a telescopic antenna terminated with a Operating the Belka DX Fig. 5: A highly portable piece of radio kit.
BNC connector, all wrapped in bubble wrap. Switch-on requires you to press and hold the
No instructions, but no matter, these are PWR button. You are then presented with Presumably, this is essentially an RF gain
available as a PDF file: a display that shows the frequency with a adjustment, and it does work very well.
https://tinyurl.com/mj44tmv9 resolution of 1Hz, although the maximum
The first thing that strikes you is the size of tuning step resolution is 10Hz. Reception Parameters
the Belka DX. It is tiny – as noted above – and Pressing in and holding the tuning knob Pressing the MOD button reveals the various
about the size of two boxes of matches. The displays the various available tuning steps: reception modes: CWU (where the carrier
case is made of metal and finished very well 10, 20, 50, and 100Hz, and 1, 5, 10 and 50KHz. frequency is displayed in the same way as an
in black, with what looks like a high-quality You scroll through the various tuning step SSB signal would be), LSB, USB, AM1, AM2
powder coating. options by rotating the tuning knob. The only (which appears to be a pseudo-synchronous
Controls are few; there is a tuning knob other indications on the small LCD are battery detection-type receive mode that sounds
on the side of the unit. This also operates as charge level, signal strength (with a graded quite harsh), and NFM.
a multi-function knob when accessing the scale from 0 to 90, and the current receive Pressing the MOD button again displays
menu system. You will find a BNC connector mode. the audio bandwidth ‘high’ cut-off frequency;
for attaching the supplied telescopic or Adjusting the volume requires a quick another press shows the ‘low’ cut-off
another external antenna, a standard 3.5mm press of the VOL button, while, once again, frequency. There are various high cut-off
headphone socket and an IQ output socket rotating the tuning know. Another quick press bandwidth selections: 2k, 2.4k, 2.7k, 3k, 3.5k,
for viewing a signal spectrum via SDR of the ‘VOL’ knob then displays the Sensitivity and 4k. Similarly, the low cut-off frequencies
software such as SDRuno for example. setting, which can be adjusted with the tuning available are 50, 75,100, 150, 200, and 300Hz.
The unit also offers a USB socket with a knob from a low to high setting. This is a very flexible signal demodulation

Review
set-up for such a relatively simple and cheap Station Frequency/ kHz Comments
radio.
Shannon VOLMET 3413 Stronger, clearer signal on the Belka DX
Pressing the MEM button allows the user
to ‘write’ the current frequency, demodulation S30 ‘The Pip’, Rostov-na-Donu 3756 Equally strong signal
type and sensitivity into the memory. There
S32 ‘The Squeaky Wheel’ Rostov-na-Donu 3828 Stronger, clearer signal on the Belka DX
are 32 memories, and any one of them can be
selected/recalled by pressing MEM, rotating Shannon VOLMET 5505 Stronger, clearer signal on the Belka DX
the tuning knob and then pressing VOL. Radio Taiwan International, Kostinbrod 5900 Equally very strong signal
This system reminds me a little of how a
completely different radio operated – the Voice of Turkey, Emirler 5945 Equally very strong signal
Eton E1. Voice of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Sirjan 7325 Equally strong signal
At certain frequencies, the display of
Helliniki Radiophonia, Avlis 9420 Equally strong signal
the radio can cause noise, but this can be
resolved by switching off the display by Deutsche Welle, Pinheira 9830 Equally strong signal
pressing and holding the MOD button for 2
Radio Thailand, Udon Thani 9920 Equally very strong signal
seconds.
There are various power-on and timer Radio Exterior de España 11940 Stronger signal on the PL-880
options available in using this radio, which I Radio Pilipinas, Tinang 12120 Weak, but copyable signal on both
won’t go into.
However, I am very happy to report Table 1: Signals copied on both the Belka DX and the Tecsun PL-880.
that the backlight can be set to remain
on permanently via a menu accessed by configuration, the Belka DX demonstrated
pressing and holding the PWR button. superb sensitivity. Coupled with what • Radio Tarma 4775.04 kHz, Tarma, Peru
appears to be a very robust front end, it https://youtu.be/Bs7fMj6v2MU
Reception with coped with the Wellbook loop very admirably. • Radio Aparecida 6135.14 kHz
the Telescopic Aerial I did not experience any overloading Aparecida, Brazil
I don’t often use a short wave portable with or Intermodulation Products (IMP, i.e. https://youtu.be/UuZOBVHUgn4
the built-in telescopic because even just 20 distortions). • Rádio Clube do Pará 4885.03 kHz, Brazil
feet of wire can seriously improve reception. I have to say that this was a very positive https://youtu.be/AmIB_sNcvJM
However, as a test of basic sensitivity, surprise. Portables, at the best of times, are • Radio Mosoj Chaski 3310 kHz Bolivia
I compared reception on the supplied often prone to overload because they are https://youtu.be/Zuk7i9nO444
telescopic aerial with one of the best simply not designed to be used with large
• Radio Mali 9635 kHz Bamako
portables on the market today – the Tecsun antenna systems/ strong input signals.
https://youtu.be/BUm6ORxeu8A
PL-880. The PL-880 has been my go-to radio The Belka DX shone here. In terms of
• Voice of Korea (DPRK) 6170 kHz
when travelling for the past couple of years ‘catches’ on short wave, I would have to say it
https://youtu.be/vPo0o4Li-k4
and provided an excellent calibration point for is as good as just about any other radio in my
the Belka DX. collection. Table 2 shows some examples of • Voice of Korea (KCBS) 7570 kHz
Table 1 summarises stations copied on how this diminutive radio performed. https://youtu.be/typcMhI58N4
both radios with their respective telescopic Bear in mind that some of these stations • Transatlantic MW DX:
aerials, with additional comments added. are extremely hard to copy and rarely reported WGIT Puerto Rico 1660 kHz
Whilst using both receivers with their in Europe https://tinyurl.com/2pc9fw8m
respective telescopic aerials, I was unable to
find a signal that could be copied with audio Conclusion Table 2: Short Wave Reception with the Belka DX.
on the PL-880 and could not be heard on the The Belka DX is a steal priced at around
Belka DX. €150. I keep on about performance as For me, another annoying feature is having
The reverse was also true; I was not able to a function of price, and here I go again; to press a button to adjust the audio volume.
find a signal that could be copied on the Belka this little radio is up there with the best. This is very reminiscent of my Degen DE1103,
DX, that was not also received on the Tecsun. Sensitivity is equal to some of the best which I eventually sold because I could not
However, in many cases, signals on the Belka portables ever manufactured and it get on with its ergonomics.
were either equally as strong, or stronger than is probably the most compact, high- No such fate for the Belka DX, it’s just too
on the Tecsun. This is an excellent result for performance portable ever. good for that.
the Belka considering the PL-880 has long It certainly represents the most compact However, if and when I start travelling for
been regarded as one of the best short wave radio I have ever used. That makes it perfect work again or take vacations I will certainly
portables on the market. for travelling, of course – just slip it into your take the Belka with me. But I will also be
backpack with a reel of wire and away you go. bringing the PL-880 or another portable for
Reception with a However, there is a downside. The menu those DXing sessions when I want to DX with
Wellbrook ALA1530 system, although excellent, is rather tiresome a complete set of front panel controls.
For medium wave X-band and short wave after a while. Having to continually depress The only thing left to say is that I
DXing, I attached the Belka to one of my the tuning/multi-function knob just to skip wholeheartedly recommend this little radio
Wellbrook ALA1530 magnetic loop antennas, bands by changing the tuning rate does get to anyone – you won’t be disappointed – you
located outside in the garden. With this old rather quickly. will be amazed.

024 Belka Review.indd 26 18/05/2021 12:58

Feature
UNIDEN
Anne Reed 2EI GKY

[email protected]
M
y interest in all types of
scanners started many
years before I was taking
my Amateur Radio Exam.
I discovered that looking
at scanners helped me to understand
how a range of aspects in radio worked
and how communications procedures
unfolded. Hence, communications on
2m, and the marine and air bands, are still
my favourites to this day, and one of my
abiding joys is putting a magnetic mount
aerial on the car and operating 2 meters
with a range of aerials.
Over the years, I have acquired many
base station and handheld scanners
from the top brands, such as Sony,
Uniden and Yupiteru. I still remember 1
my very first scanner: It was a Uniden
Bearcat UBC175XL (Fig. 1). It went
WaveHawks, Nomads
up to 512 MHz with 16 channels.
However, seeing the attractive wood
veneer was very nice; the next models
were nearly all made of plastic.
https://tinyurl.com/73xh39z2
From the Uniden ‘Bearcat’ range, I also
owned the UBC200 XLT handheld (Fig. 2).
& Airmasters: Some
Scanning Memories
https://tinyurl.com/ynvj9xc5
The Tandy / Radio Shack shops were
then, naturally, one of my greatest temp-
tations. The firm’s trade name was, of
course, ‘Realistic’. I feel certain that most
of you remember the Realistic scanners: Anne Reed pays homage to the wonderful hobby of
The Realistic Pro-43, for example, with cov-
erage from 68 to 1,000MHz and switcha-
airband listening and reviews some of the scanners
ble AM/FM, was a real bonus in those early and aerials she has loved and owned, before describing
days. However, not content with handhelds
I also acquired the base model Realistic
her current setup – and a new shack.
Pro-2032 (Fig. 3) which offered some very
good sensitivity. with great interest (Fig. 5). These radios In terms of aerials, I tend to use those
https://tinyurl.com/pu8rsmew were dedicated to airband. With them, I which have been purposely designed and
In addition to this, my treasured AOR would frequently be able to ‘plot’ the path built for this band. I have had a Revco
AR-2002 (Fig. 4) went up to 1,300MHz of Concorde from Heathrow to Shanwick Nomad aerial, which could be easily fitted
in coverage and included the SSB mode. before it crossed the Atlantic. However, to a curtain rail.
For many years, this radio ruled supreme I found that the buttons on the front https://tinyurl.com/3p7nfj79
on my desk. I also owned a Black Jaguar were sometimes not too easy to oper- Much later, I was the proud owner of a
BJ200. However, I found that this receiverate. Moreover, to this day, I have the small Watson W-881 Super Gainer, which yielded
suffered from some limitations in terms ofSignal Communications R537 (Fig. 6) with far better results than many other rubber-
its batteries. two dedicated crystals. duck types.
https://tinyurl.com/yn523a8a https://tinyurl.com/p26p7ru9 https://tinyurl.com/2z5aemdt
https://tinyurl.com/rntuvm8a I have also tried out the famous Sony Air Last but not least, one of my peren-
7 and ICF-Pro 80 models. The latter had a nial favourites has been the CHELCOM
Aviation and Aerials rather unsatisfactory converter to screw Airmaster (117-137 and 224-400MHz)
As a life-long aviation enthusiast, I no- into the aerial socket. airband antenna (see: Monitoring Times,
ticed the manufacture of the Signal https://tinyurl.com/y93uzckh August 1998: 86; Fig. 7).
Communications models R-532 and R-535 https://tinyurl.com/trfyu9t8 https://tinyurl.com/4a6t7wra

Feature
2. THE RIGPIX DATABASE 3. THE RIGPIX DATABASE 4. THE RIGPIX DATABASE 5. GEORG WIESSALA 6. THE RIGPIX DATABASE 7. ANNE READ
4 6
2
5 7
Quite a Collection Fig.1: The Uniden Bearcat UBC175XL. Fig. 2: The Uniden Bearcat UBC200 XLT handheld.
Returning to my past scanners, I loved my Fig. 3: The sensitive Realistic PRO-2032. Fig. 4: The very popular AOR AR-2002.
Sony ICF-SC 1PC WaveHawk 300-chan- Fig. 5: The Signal Communications R-532 and R-535 models – still much sought-after.
nel scanner (Fig. 8), which Jeff Waters, of Fig. 6: The Signal Communications R537. Fig. 7: The CHELCOM Airmaster 117-137MHz.
Waters and Stanton, was kind enough to Fig. 8: The Sony ICF-SC 1 PC WaveHawk Scanner. Fig. 9: The Yupiteru VT-225. Fig. 10: The Yupiteru
bring back for me from one of his American MVT-8000 base station scanner. Fig. 11: Scanning Secrets, by Mark Francis and Bill Laver.
visits. At the time, importing this model Fig. 12: The author’s ‘Woman-Cave’ / Radio Shed. Fig. 13: The shed – and an antenna currently in use.
was not allowed into this country for some
odd reason. The software for it, alas, was and VT-225 (Fig. 9). variants. For base sta- In addition to these, my Uniden Bearcat
only Windows 95. This probably shows my tion use, I preferred the Yupiteru MVT-8000 UBC75XLT and UBC360XLT (now:
age. (Fig. 10). UBC370XLT) are still in regular use here.
https://tinyurl.com/ft6xdumt https://www.javiation.co.uk/vt.html https://tinyurl.com/5a73yjtt
It has become a struggle to get my https://tinyurl.com/4hspx9j7 I was a loyal customer and friend of Jeff
Laptop 7 or IO to accept this scanner. Therefore, you might say that I bought, Stanton and Mark Francis of Waters and
Therefore, if anyone has any advice on sold and traded in rather a lot of scanners Stanton at Hockley for about 30 years. Back
this, I would be very grateful to receive it. over the years. then, Mark Francis and Bill Laver wrote a
You can write to me at the e-mail address at book called Scanning Secrets. I was privi-
the head of this column. In the Present leged to have received the very first copy of
A Win Industries Ltd. (Japan) 108 did Presently, I still have my Realistic Pro-26 this – personally signed by Mark (Fig 11.).
once also join my family of scanners. Later, (20-9506) and GRE PSR-295, which I do not Mark would often send me a new scan-
Yupiteru got me interested, in particular the want to party with. ner handheld to try, as he knew I would give
MVT- 7100 model, which offered SSB func- https://tinyurl.com/fh2zw23s it a very fair test.
tionality. To date, I have owned two units of http://www.rigpix.com/gre/psr295.htm I still miss Mark Francis and Jeff Stanton.
this model, and they still sell on eBay. The latter, of course, had the new I also used to attend the Longleat Radio
With aviation continuing to be a special 8.33kHz steps for airband. Rallies, so that I could see them both, as I
interest, I also operated the Yupiteru VT-125 http://www.javiation.co.uk/833.html never got to their Hockley premises.

Feature
8. THE RIGPIX DATABASE 9. THE RIGPIX DATABASE 10. THE RIGPIX DATABASE 11. PICCLICK.UK 12. ANNE REED 13. ANNE REED
11
10 12
Over the years, as you might guess, sev- being equipped with mains power, I was of amateur radio and scanning – is well and
eral scanners were traded in. On one occa- able to operate from it using a dual-band truly ‘in my blood’! I have always loved the
sion, some items had been collected, which Watson antenna. hobby. Besides, being licensed as a radio
– I suddenly realised – should not have let Sadly, we had to leave the summer house amateur has enhanced it and, on many oc-
go. So I rang Frank, who at that time was behind when we moved, so it was just a casions, taken my knowledge, passion and
in Goods Inwards, and I said, “Have you un- case of dismantling the antenna which interest a big step further. AR
packed my parcel?”. Thankfully, he said was re-erected on a 16’ pole by GP Aerials
“no”, so I asked for it to be returned. The on the back of our bungalow. As the gar-
moral here is too much haste can be very den here is a lot smaller, and my husband
expensive. Sydney’s greenhouse and garden frames
had been installed, there was no allocated
A Woman’s Shack space for me!
During the recent lockdown, I have finally After waiting patiently for seven years,
managed to acquire a decent shed (Fig. space was finally cleared for a 6’ by 4’
13). This was a momentous event for me, pent-roofed shed which was ordered from
and it was duly reported in the Members’ Waltons of Newark and arrived on 25th
News section of Ragchew – the newslet- November 2020. I arranged for an installer
ter of the Gloucester Amateur Radio & to assemble it, and I am now engaged in us-
Electronics Society (GARES)! ing an aerial fixed to my tripod support and
https://tinyurl.com/pcupmeap adjacent to the shed (Fig. 12).
http://www.g4aym.org.uk At present, there is no heating or lighting,
I am now looking forward to operating so I am planning to use my heavy-duty bat-
from it when the weather warms up just a tery to power the various rigs I plan to use.
bit more. Before we moved to our present Watch this space.
address in Up Hatherley, I had a very nice In conclusion, you could say that radio – 13
8’ by 8’ summer house with verandah and, in all its aspects, and specifically in terms

Airband News
David Smith
[email protected] Every Second Counts
David Smith reports on improvements
in HF monitoring, revisits the origins during the next two days -North - Moderate More than 400 people perished, and the
of weather forecasting and compiles westerly wind, fine. West - moderate south- cargo was lost.
an ATC profile of Yeovilton. westerly, fine. South - fresh westerly, fine.” Spurred by this disaster, Fitzroy pointed
This was, perhaps, somewhat vague, but out that the new science of telegraphy
HF Propagation Improvements ground-breaking, nevertheless. It was the would enable approaching weather
PanAm Radio’s Paul Allen wrote to thank work of Robert Fitzroy who, 30 years earlier systems to be reported before they arrived.
me for including his station in April’s had served as the captain of HMS Beagle, If these could be collated and a warning
column (RadioUser, April 2021: 38/9). He carrying Charles Darwin on a survey of issued in good time, such shipwrecks
commented further: “As you know, we are South America. might be avoided in future. Early in 1841, he
on HF every day, and I wanted you to know While his more famous passenger was established the first storm warning system
we are seeing a definite improvement in discovering evolution, Fitzroy was studying using barometer readings from around the
HF conditions as (solar)cycle 25 kicks into weather patterns around Cape Horn and country sent in by telegraph. He plotted
gear and is now making a difference. My Tierra del Fuego, predicting atmospheric them on a weather chart at the first sign of
opinion, after 50 years in this business, is changes and taking barometer and a looming storm and telegraphed warnings
that your readers should be really enjoying hygrometer readings. Admiral Fitzroy was to coastal stations, where beacons were
airband monitoring on HF in another six to subsequently appointed ‘Meteorological hoisted to alert shipping.
nine months, as propagation continues to Statist to the Board of Trade’, collating wind Fitzroy coined a new name for his
improve.” data from ships’ logs to plot the safest anticipatory weather reports. “Prophecies
[Look out for an article by Paul in one of routes across the Atlantic. and predictions they are not”, he wrote. “The
the forthcoming issues of RadioUser – Ed.] He might have continued with this term forecast is strictly applicable to such
mundane task, had it not been for an an opinion as it is the result of scientific
The Dawn of Weather unexpected storm in October 1859. combination and calculation”. In the 1850s,
Forecasting The Royal Charter, a sail and steamship more than 1,000 people a year died off the
On 1 August 1861, The Times newspaper returning to Liverpool from Australia, was British coast, but that number dropped by a
published the world’s first public weather wrecked on the rocky coast of Anglesey by third, as a result of his storm warnings.
forecast. It read: “General weather probable hurricane-force winds in the Irish Sea. However, his forecasts in The Times

Airband News
were not always accurate. He was brutally RAF ATC Profiles 3: Yeovilton
mocked whenever they proved wrong, ICAO Code: EGDY IATA Code: YEO
and people found their outdoor events or
seaside holidays ruined by unforeseen Frequencies (MHz)
weather. Yeovil Approach/Radar 234.300
Under acute media pressure, Fitzroy 127.350
Yeovil Director 240.575
became despondent and took his own life Yeovil Talkdown 247.400
in 1865 at the age of 59. 397.050
The father of weather forecasting has 123.300
gained belated recognition. Yeovil Tower 376.300
120.800
The Met Office he founded stands on
Yeovil Ground 362.850
Fitzroy Road in Exeter; and in 2002, to end 122.100
its confliction with Sea Area names of the Yeovil Ops 3.942
French and Spanish services, the Finisterre (HF Emergency and Ops Normal transmissions for station-based aircraft only)
zone on the BBC Shipping Forecast was ATIS
renamed Fitzroy in his honour. Yeovil Information 244.550
Navaids ILS/DME Runway 26

High-Intensity Runway TACAN VLN 111.00
Operations at Gatwick: Runways 08 (2,293 x 45m)
(HIRO - pronounced ‘Hero’) 26 (2,293 x 45m)
Before the pandemic, which has left all 04 (1,464 x 45m)
London airports pale shadows of their 22 (1,464 x 45m)
former selves, the world’s most efficient NOTES (A-Z)
single runway at London Gatwick had Helicopter Operations
achieved the seemingly impossible de- Intense helicopter activity can be expected at all times. Station-based helicopters have special arrival
and departure points and procedures at this aerodrome, which are laid down in local orders.
clared capacity of 55 movements an hour
Lower Airspace Radar Service (LARS)
at peak periods.
Yeovilton-based aircraft may operate H24. A Lower Airspace Radar Service (LARS) is normally available
The Drive for 55 programme involved between 0830-1700 Mon-Thu, and 0830-1400 Fri. Outside of these hours, when the aerodrome is open,
implementing many different procedures a MATZ (Military Aerodrome Traffic Zone) service will normally be provided. Transiting aircraft are to
and system developments, both on the blind-call Yeovil Radar before crossing the MATZ outside published hours.
ground and in the air. Stabilising arrivals Visiting Civil Aircraft
spacing on final approach was one Strictly by arrangement 24 hours before from Yeovil Ops.
improvement that produced a major Warnings
Instrument Approach Procedures for this aerodrome are established outside controlled airspace.
increase in runway throughput. This
Recreational flying and gliding take place outside of published hours.
provided much greater accuracy and Police/SAR/Air Ambulance are approved to transit the ATZ outside published hours.
predictability for launching a departure Police/SAR/Air Ambulance should call Yeovil Tower 120.8MHz, which is monitored when activity is
between two arrivals while minimising the taking place.
risk of an arrival going around.
Gatwick controllers occasionally
achieved 60 movements an hour on its sin- of aircraft. This builds upon some of the a day is equivalent to at least three more
gle runway. This became another ambi- capabilities implemented during the Drive movements in an hour.
tious target to aim for, but the challenge for for 55 programme, including spacing tools Operating at the equivalent of one
the airport was to find ways to deliver this for both departures and arrivals. aircraft per minute means that every
rate consistently whenever needed, day in- The second job is far more radical and second really does count. To achieve the
day out. requires new tools and techniques to required movement level, Time Based
Over the last few years, Gatwick has been reduce the workload of the controllers Separation (TBS) will be employed on
working on a major research effort to figure to enable them to handle more aircraft: approach, as opposed to the current
out how much more runway capacity can Currently, when Gatwick Tower requests system which measures the separation
realistically be achieved. A rate of 60 move- the arrival spacing from London Terminal between aircraft by distance.
ments an hour has never been reached at a Control, it typically requests six or 5.5-mile TBS has already been proven at London
commercial airport consistently, so ensur- spacing. This distance gives the airport Heathrow. Gatwick plans to adapt this work
ing it can be achieved regularly is a signifi- enough time between two arrivals to safely so that it fits in with the airport’s mixed-
cant and complex project. allow a departure. However, this system mode operation on a single runway, rather
The airport’s team has narrowed down is not as efficient as it could be because, than the two at Heathrow used separately
the requirements to just two key tasks that for example, it does not allow Gatwick for arrivals and departures.
Gatwick needs to undertake, in order to to request a 5.75-mile separation. It is The plan is now on hold, of course, and
achieve its ambitious objective. either a six or 5.5-mile spacing. Translated it remains to be seen how long it will be
The first one involves integrating the into time, that means adding an extra before these measures can be put into
latest technologies into a single operating six seconds of ‘buffer’ to the spacing effect.
system to achieve greater operational between the two arrivals. Adding all the This month’s photograph is of London
precision in the spacing and sequencing six-second buffers up over the course of Gatwick Control Tower.

Sales line 01908 281705
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Icom have been building radio receivers
and scanners for a variety of applications 2499 Uniden is the best known manufacturer 749 The Whistlers Scanners are USA designed
and built to last – The TRX-1 & TRX-2 are our
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MLP-32 100-1300MHz Log have both software and hardware 239
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Feature
WIKIPEDIA
Georg Wiessala
[email protected]
“The Universe seems to me to be a great

reservoir of life and mind. The Unseen
Universe is a great reality. This is the region
to which we really belong, and to which we
shall one day return.”
(Oliver Lodge, My Philosophy [1933]).
A
lasdair Pinkerton has a way
with words when it comes to
radio. In his wonderful and
wide-ranging book (Radio,
2019: 51), he makes the fol-
lowing point: “The early history of radio is
mired in controversy, accusations of intel-
lectual theft and dishonesty, patent infringe-
ments, disputed court rulings, spurious
science, enormous egos, self-publicity and
disputed legacies. It is a history animated
by the basest of human instincts, ambition,
and greed, but also by undisputed genius
and the triumph of the human imagination.
While this story recalls some of the most
eminent names in science during the late
nineteenth and early twentieth centuries,
including James Clerk Maxwell, Heinrich
Rudolf Hertz, and Guglielmo Marconi, it has
also failed to remember – even silenced –
the contributions made by rather less well-
known names such as Reginald Fessenden,
Oliver Lodge, Jagadish Chandra Bose, and
Nikola Tesla, as well as dozens of others
besides.”
It appears that, from the latter group,
Oliver Lodge (Figs. 1 and 2) is best charac-
terized by borrowing Goethe’s phrase Zwei
Seelen wohnen, ach! in meiner Brust […]
(two souls, alas, dwell in my bosom; Faust 1,
v 1112 – 1117). Not that Lodge has made,
to my knowledge, any Faustian Pacts with
1 the Devil; however, he appears to have been
a man of apparent contradictions.
A Foot in Both On the one hand, he consistently promot-

ed a ‘disinterested’ approach to science for
science’s sake; and, on the other hand, he
was deeply interested in applying science
Worlds: Sir Oliver to useful real-world issues.

In addition to this, he was a great science
communicator and popularizer (Lightman,
Joseph Lodge, FRS

in Mussell and Gooday, 2021: Ch. 6), even
in the pages of Past Years, his 1931 autobi-
ography.
He was, perhaps, the Carl Sagan of his
day.
The editor Georg Wiessala looks at the life and work What becomes clear is that Lodge went
of the former President of the Radio Society of Great both behind the scenes of the latest sci-
entific discoveries of his time and behind
Britain Oliver Lodge (1851-1940), who combined the veil of the thriving spiritualist (‘psy-
teaching and scientific discovery with spiritualism. chic’) movement of his era. He managed,

Feature
WIKIPEDIA GUTENBERG PROJECT
2 4
UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH PRESS / AMAZON RSGB/UK
Fig. 1: Oliver Lodge (1851-1940).

Fig. 2: The Victoria Monument in Liverpool.
Fig. 3: Mussell and Gooday’s new biography.
Fig. 4: Lodge’s The Survival of Man (1911) and
other publications (left-hand side).
Fig. 5: A republication of Lodge’s key text, Modern
Views of Electricity. This makes a key text on
electromagnetic research more accessible.
as Mussell and Gooday point out (2021: 5,

Fig. 3) to ‘reconcile both within a recogniz-
able Christian framework’, in which cos-
mic evolution was nothing less than the
prime process of God’s creation.
Importantly, many contemporary sourc-
es seem to agree that Lodge could com-
municate and expose deep and difficult
ideas clearly and transparently; something
that, as a lecturer, I can wholeheartedly ap-
preciate.
Life and Times 3 5

There were two kinds of electrical experi-
menters (‘natural philosophers’) in the Maxwell (1831-1879) and Heinrich Hertz and Faraday. Lodge excelled at using this
past: those with plenty of enthusiasm and (1857-1894), amongst other luminaries. ‘language of display’, producing and main-
little business nous, and those who were Most of these pioneers embodied, to taining what has been termed a ‘shared
showmen first and natural philosophers various degrees, the idea of science as a self-consciousness’ with his ‘public’
second. ‘show’ (The Spectrum Monitor, December (Morus, 2010: 806-816).
Lodge, like Tesla, sat at the source of 2020: 18). Indeed, the ‘performative’ as- And the Victorians – of this there is no
this ‘confluence of electricity and specta- pect of electrical discoveries was part- doubt – loved the ‘experimental’ culture of
cle’ (Morus, 2019: 97). He has been said and-parcel of science since at least the their era. This in itself could shape a scien-
to have enjoyed showing off his work with times of Galvani’s (1737-1798) frogs and tist’s path through life, as both a research-
plants, moving-coil loudspeakers, light- Mary Shelley’s (1797-1851) Frankenstein er and teacher.
ning protection, Leyden jars and other ap- (TSM, April 2018; Levy, 2018).
paratus. The reason lies in the appetites of Publicly demonstrating electrical sci- A Lifespan of Achievement
a curious public at the time. ence was key to the Victorian natural phi- The more traditional biographies of Lodge
But science, for him, seems to have had losophers’ sense of identity, it helped to continue to segment his life into four
strong connections to both the ‘everyday’ cement their authority over a subject, and phases: early life (1851-1880), his time at
and the ‘numinous’. it fulfilled a need of the public at the time. University College Liverpool (1881-1900,
Oliver Lodge was a willing student of In adopting these strategies, Oliver Fig. 2) and Birmingham University (1900-
the work of Michael Faraday (1791-1867), Lodge only followed his illustrious prede- 1919), and his long ’retirement’ in the
Joseph Henry (1797-1878), James Clerk cessors, like Humphrey Davy (1778-1829) Interbellum (1919-1940). From the time of

Feature
WIKIPEDIA (FAIRLEIGH DICKINSON UNIVERSITY PRESS) OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS
6
AWA/RCA
8 9
Fig. 5: Radio-Craft Magazine, of December 1929 When German radio hero Heinrich Hertz
featured Oliver Lodge. had come to London previously (1890) to
Fig. 6: Presentation cover of the Joint Exhibit collect the Rumford Medal awarded to him
Celebrating Sir Oliver Lodge (AWA/RCA, 2010/11). by the Royal Society, he and Lodge dined
Fig. 7: W.P. Jolly’s biography, Sir Oliver Lodge: together at the Langham Hotel; and eight
Psychical Researcher and Scientist, is hard to find years later (1898), Lodge was to collect
but rewards the effort. the same award by the Royal Society, for
Fig. 8: In this unique anthology, Laura Otis his contributions on the relationship be-
7 provides much-needed background to the period. tween ‘matter’ and ‘ether’ (aka: ‘aether’).
his youth, an abiding interest in astrono- Lodge also shaped wider University life, Major Discoveries and
my stands out. In his ‘prime’, during his through his commitments to a liberal ap- Demonstrations
Liverpool Professorial years, he worked proach to higher education, and scientific Some argue (Forbes and Mahon, 2014:
mainly on current-paths, Leyden jars, elec- rigour and the experimental method. 250-52) that Lodge was, perhaps, more at
trolysis, coherers, inductance, and light- During the 1880s, Lodge, the clay- home in the world of lecturing and prac-
ning conductors – work that can be seen merchant’s son from Staffordshire, was tical experimentation, rather than in the
as ‘precursory’ to wireless telegraphy and actively searching for electromagnet- realms of higher mathematics. The extent
radio communication (Wilson, 1995: 7). ic waves – only to be pipped at the post of Lodge’s mathematical skills, and his
Moreover, Lodge was very active on the by Heinrich Hertz of the Technische alleged preference for ‘models’, are still
lecturing circuit, as well as in his core re- Hochschule in the German city of debated (Stanley, in Mussell and Gooday,
search. Karslruhe. Hertz had detected electromag- 2021: Ch. 5). In any case, Lodge seems to
It is in this middle period of his career, netic waves not just in wires, but in free have been undeterred and set out to de-
that he discovered spiritualism, for exam- space too, and who swiftly published his tect electromagnetic waves.
ple, in the shape of ‘though-transference’, findings in 1888. He eventually found them when ob-
leading to an entire book (The Survival It is said that Lodge was disappointed serving discharges from Leyden jars and
of Man [1911], Fig. 4). This small volume but did not wallow in his grief if there was their effects, thus confirming James Clerk
makes for fascinating biographical back- any. Lodge ‘acknowledged that Hertz’s ex- Maxwell’s ideas.
ground reading, even today. periments were beautifully done and that Significantly, Lodge demonstrated wire-
However, in this world, Lodge’s work they demonstrated the existence of waves less telegraphy in public, in another pio-
confirmed Maxwell’s theories on elec- in the field, rather than just in conduc- neering lecture at the Royal Institution
tromagnetic waves. From his time in tors, more clearly than his own (Hunt, in in London on 1st June 1894. He used his
Birmingham, there is no denying that Mussell and Gooday, 2020: 71). ‘Hertz-Receiver’, in memoriam of Hertz,
– quite aside from academic achieve- Instead, he transmitted a wireless sig- who had gone ‘silent-key’, as it were, on
ment – the death of Lode’s youngest son nal, at a landmark meeting of the British 1st January 1894. For the annual gath-
Raymond – who was killed on the Western Association for the Advancement of ering, on 1st August 1894, at the British
Front in World War I – left an indelible im- Science (BAAS) in Oxford on 14th August Association for the Advancement of
pression on him; witness his touching 1894 – one year after Tesla, and one year Science in the same year, Lodge demon-
book on this period (Raymond). However, before Marconi (RCA 2010/11: 11). strated his improved coherer and showed

Feature
Petrus van Musschenbroek (1692-1761) Capacitator (‘Leyden Jar’)
Jean-Antoine Nollet (Abbé Nollet) (1700-1770) Osmosis

Resources
Benjamin Franklin (1706-1790) Positive and Negative Electric Charge • Aitken, H.G. (1985) Syntony and Spark:
Charles Augustus Coulomb (1736-1806) Electrostatic force of attraction and repulsion. The Origins of Radio (N.J.: Princeton UP;
Chapter 4).
Luigi Galvani (1737-1798) Animal Electricity, Medical Electricity
• Bibliography: American Wireless
Alessandro Volta (1745-1827) Electric Battery (Voltaic Pile) Association / Radio Club of America
(2010/11): 58.
Hans Christian Ørsted (1777-1851) Electromagnetism
• Forbes, N. and Mahon, B. (2015) Faraday,
Michael Faraday (1791-1867) Mutual Induction, Electric Motor, Magnetic Field Maxwell, and the Electromagnetic Field
Joseph Henry (1797-1878) Induction, Electro-Magnets (New York: Prometheus).
• Garratt, J.R.M. (1993) The Early History
Heinrich Rühmkorff (1803-1877) Induction Coils (The Rühmkorff-Coil) of Radio – From Faraday to Marconi (IET
Heinrich Geissler (1814-1879) Gas Discharge Tube History of Technology Series 20; Chapter 5).
• Goldsmith, M. (2018) Waves: A Very Short
Mahlon Loomis (1826-1886) Aerial Telegraph (Radio Transmission)
Introduction (Oxford: OUP).
James Clerk Maxwell (1831-1879) Theory of Radio Waves • Grace’s Guide:
https://tinyurl.com/y5548tcs
Édouart Branly (1844-1940) Radio Conductor/ Coherer
• BBC Radio 4: In our Time (Melvyn Bragg):
Oliver Lodge (1851-1940) Electromagnetic Waves, Science Education The Royal Society and British Science
(2 episodes):
Joseph John Thomson (1856-1940) Electron
https://tinyurl.com/4ppanyew
Nikola Tesla (1856-1943) AC Motor, Tesla Coil, Radio Transmission • Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Heinrich Hertz (1857-1894) Radio Transmission Engineers (IEEE) Global History Network:
Sir Oliver Lodge:
Jagadish Chandra Bose (1858-1937) Microwave Radiation, Semiconductors, Crystal Detector https://ethw.org/Oliver_Lodge
Alexander Popov (1859-1906) Radio Transmission • Jackson, S. (2014) Dear Raymond […];
(Fonthill Media)
Reginald Fessenden (1866-1932) Radio, voice transmission, sonar
• Jolly, W.P. (1975) Sir Oliver Lodge -
Guglielmo Marconi (1874-1937) Radio Transmission Psychical Researcher and Scientist
(Rutherford/ NJ: Fairleigh Dickinson
Ernst Alexanderson (1878-1975) Alexanderson Alternator/ VLF Transmitter
University Press).
Table 1: A timeline of some selected key radio pioneers. • Lodge and Marconi:
https://tinyurl.com/u7jkdxsm
that he was able to transmit Morse code By the way, Marconi’s transmitter was • Lodge, Oliver (1889, reissued RSGB, 2020)
wirelessly to another room (Jolly, 1974: Ch. the one outlined by Lodge in 1893, and Modern Views of Electricity (MacMillan /
8; RCA/AWA 2010/11: 13). which Marconi, the ‘Dreamer of Electric RSGB).
https://tinyurl.com/jc4ca7nn Dreams’ had used in his own popular pres- • Lodge’s works on Project Gutenberg:
In doing so, he not only followed in the entations and lectures of the time (Morus, https://tinyurl.com/tw7nepc6
footsteps of Édouard Branly (1844-1940) 2019: 135/6). • Making Waves: OL and the Cultures of
and Hertz. But he also expanded on the Science (Project).
work of the Welsh-American inventor David Beyond the Luminiferous Ether http://www.oliverlodge.org
Edward Hughes (1831-1900). Hughes in- During the Chicago Exhibition in the mid- • Motteley, P.F. (1922) Bibliographical History
vented the printing telegraph, as well as an 1890s, when Nikola Tesla worked on his of Electricity and Magnetism (C. Griffin &
early kind of microphone. oscillating transformer and appeared at Co. Ltd.; Reprint: NY: M. Martino).
As is well known, Lodge clashed with the Institution of Electrical Engineers for his • Mussell, J. and Gooday, G. (2020) A Pioneer
Marconi, when it came to secure his in- lecture in January 1892, scientists were of Connection (University of Pittsburgh
tellectual property rights to wireless te- still hammering out a possible electrical Press).
legraphy in a dispute with the Marconi future: Goldsmith (2018: 28) reminds us • Radio Club of America (RCA) / Antique
Company. Lodge sued in 1910 and settled that, “up until around 1900, electromagnetic Wireless Association (AWA): A Joint Exhibit
for £15,000 and a consultancy appoint- waves were thought to be just like any other Celebrating Sir Oliver Lodge (19th November
ment in Marconi’s company (AWA/RAC physical wave, but that the medium they 2010, New York City; 19th August 2011,
2010/11: 35; Pinkerton, 2019: 69-72). passed through was very hard to detect”; Rochester, NY):
Nonetheless, there is much of the work they were thought to be ‘vibrations’, inside https://tinyurl.com/y3kkw3vn
of Oliver Lodge that pre-figured the find- this ‘luminiferous ether. • Oliver Lodge: ‘The 1894 Lecture that was
ings of Marconi, who would appear on the The term ‘ether’ (‘aether’) denotes a to Change the World’ (BBC: Shock and Awe:
scene in London in 1896, and who transmit- wave-bearing medium that fills all space. The Story of Electricity):
ted wireless signals across La Manche to It is, perhaps, best interpreted as a ‘con- https://tinyurl.com/rt9ztk9h
France, just three years later – a feat that jectural function’ (a ‘model’), employed to
left Tesla famously underwhelmed. explain variously, gravity, magnetism, and

Feature
electrical attraction. Pinkerton summa- Ken Reitz, in RadioUser July 2020: 34).
rizes (2019: 187) that, in the time before https://tinyurl.com/y4j9x34t
Maxwell, “many late Victorian scholars, sci- Oliver Lodge was certainly a driving Resources
entists and public figures were persuaded force in making this happen, and the • Otis, L. (2002, re-issued 2009) Literature
of [sic] the continuation and evolution of Professor was nothing if not prolific. and Science in the Nineteenth Century (OUP
the human spirit, even after physical, bod- This is evident in the resources and Oxford World Classics)
ily death.” materials assembled by the US Antique • Pinkerton, A. (2019) Radio (Reaktion Books
The ‘Spiritualism’ movement thrived at Wireless Association (AWA) and the / Science Museum)
that time, and major establishment fig- Radio Club of America (RCA), for their • Rhys Morus, I.(2010) ‘Worlds of Wonder:
ures such as Lodge or his friend, Arthur Joint Exhibit Celebrating Sir Oliver Lodge, Sensation and the Victorian Scientific
Conan Doyle (1859-1930) – the creator of presented at the RCA Annual Banquet and Performance’; Isis, Vol. 101, No. 4: 806-
such über-rational characters as Professor Technical Symposium on 19th November 816.
Challenger and Sherlock Holmes – were 2010 in New York City, and again at the • (2019) Nikola Tesla and the Electrical Future
convinced. Both Conan Doyle and Lodge AWA 50th Anniversary Conference on 19th (Icon Books)
had lost sons in World War I. August 2011 in Rochester, NY (AWA/ • Rowlands, P. (1990) Oliver Lodge and the
Lodge himself joined the Society for RCA 2010/11, Fig. 7). Leafing through Liverpool Physical Society (Liverpool:
Psychical Research in 1884, and he be- the carefully curated materials here, one Liverpool University Press)
came its President in 1901. cannot help but be struck by the diversity • Rowlands, P. and Wilson, P. (1994) Oliver
The spirit lives on, as it were, in today’s of the exhibits, publications, bookplates, Lodge and the Invention of Radio (PD
‘ghost-radios’ and supernatural shows. books, photographs, and artefacts on Publications)
Much speculation was based on the display then, including a pamphlet and • Royal Society Publishing:
presence of a ‘fourth state of matter’, or drawings from Lodge’s landmark lecture https://tinyurl.com/euzps83y
‘ether’, which, according to Lodge, elec- at the Royal Institution in London on 1st • Rybak, J.P. (ASS USA): ‘Almost the Father
tricity was a ‘mode’ or ‘manifestation’ of. June 1894, of Radio’:
Consequently, he furnished many mecha- Against this background of a rich https://tinyurl.com/x9b336xe
nisms to his version of ether-theory. The portfolio of activities, it is not surprising • Science Museum London (Group
great man’s thoughts on the ether were that Oliver Lodge became a pioneer of Collection): https://tinyurl.com/399v3trj
most eloquently expressed in his book wireless telegraphy, through what was
Modern Views of Electricity in the same known then as the Lodge-Muirhead
year (recently re-published - sadly without System of Wireless Telegraphy (Scientific interest in Lodge’s unorthodox investiga-
any comments - by the Radio Society of American, 18th April 1903, Vol. LXXXVIII, tions into mediumship and telepathy.
Great Britain [RSGB] in the UK, Fig. 5). No. 16; Nature, Vol. LXVIII, No. 1759; AWA/ I began this short overview with a quo-
https://tinyurl.com/2c8wyzjt RAC 2010/1: 47-56). tation, so I will finish with one as well: I
Oliver Lodge was as certain that the On top of this, Lodge invented electric feel that the words of an early Lodge biog-
‘ether’ existed, as he was certain of the air spark ignition (the Lodge-Igniter), an rapher still reverberate today. W. P. Jolly
he breathed, and he was convinced that it early form of a spark plug. However - and finished his 1974 book stating that (1974:
was an imperceptible, yet universal, super- perhaps most significantly for the history 38), “Where success can be measured, he
added, feature (Morus, 2019: 129). of radio - he improved the ‘coherer’ (a radio was successful. In science, his ideas are
This is the point at which, it is said, wave detector) invented by Édouart Branly incorporated in millions of pieces of equip-
Lodge differed most from his contempo- (1844-1940). Lodge added a ‘trembler’ to ment working all over the world, and be-
raries and peers. Imogen Clarke summa- it, to shake off clumped filings (to ‘self- yond it, in space. His University flourished.
rises this most eloquently (in Russell and decohere’), thus increasing the device’s His books were read by millions and his
Gooday, 2021: 121): “While Lodge did not overall sensitivity and function (AWA/RCA lectures attended by hundreds of thou-
reject relativity theory outright, he inter- 2010/11: 18/9; 54). Last but not least, sands. Some things, which were ‘impon-
preted it within a worldview of physics that OL received the ‘syntonic’ (or ‘tuning’) derables’ when he first studied them are
firmly placed the ether in its centre”; and: patent from the US Patent Office in 1898, now, like wireless waves, commonplace
“For Lodge, the ether was a fundamental and he invented a ‘bellowing-telephone’ […]. He hoped that the spiritual impondera-
and central part of modern physics, for his loudspeaker, which is very similar to the bles would, too, be shown to have an under-
contemporaries, it was (at their most gen- modern, paper cone speaker (RCA/AWA, standable reality. He died, contented, and
erous) a topic for debate.” 2010/1). The great man was the author confident that this was so.”
of more than 40 books, among them, his The magazine and book covers shown
A Lasting Legacy first one, Elementary Mechanics, came out in Figs. 6, 8 and 9 will, I hope, make you
Oliver Lodge was famously shown on when he was just 26 years old. want to learn much more about the great
the cover of the December 1929 is- https://tinyurl.com/y6gnzkls man. They also allude to the much wider
sue of Radio-Craft Magazine (ed. Hugo Many of his other titles surrounded sub- questions and problems connected to
Gernsback, Fig. 6). The issue included a jects like the afterlife, the ‘ether’, relativ- ‘electricity’ at this period in time.
perceptive tribute to the great man’s work, ity, and electromagnetic theory. It is well- This includes the wider issue of how di-
under the byline “Men who have made ra- known that many of Lodge’s works figured verse writers in particular, and society at
dio”, describing the medium of radio as highly on the young Marconi’s reading list large, reacted to the investigation of the
“the annihilator of space and unifier of na- (Pinkerton, 2019: 53). And the physicists phenomena, both physical and supernatu-
tions.” (on US radio magazines, see also: Heinrich Hertz and Max Planck expressed ral, which Oliver Lodge examined.

Radio News
RADIO ACADEMY HAS A NEW HEAD: The
Radio Academy has appointed Sam Bailey
(right) as its new Managing Director, effective
immediately. Sam, who is a former Trustee of the
Academy, and was Chair of the ARIAS in 2020,
will be responsible for the day-to-day running of
the charity, and the continued development of its
programming, membership schemes and events.
He will report to The Radio Academy Chair, Helen
Thomas, and work closely with Deputy Chair
Nick Pitts and the board of Trustees. Sam was
previously a Commissioning Executive at BBC
Radio 1, the last in several roles he held over a
14-year career at the BBC. For the last two years,
Sam has been the Managing Director of the Audio
Content Fund, a role he will continue alongside
his Radio Academy responsibilities. The Radio
Academy has not had a permanent MD since RADIO EXE AND LOCAL DEMOCRACY: Radio he was secretary of state for culture, media and
Sean Childerley left in August 2019 after just nine Exe is one of 18 news organisations in the sport in the last Labour government. That idea
months in the role […]. UK that will employ journalists to cover ‘local was picked up by the current broadcast minister
(SOURCE: Radio Academy | Radio Today) democracy’, providing content to other media John Wittingdale when he held that post. Radio
https://tinyurl.com/uf7p9ra6 companies who qualify to receive it. The Local Exe’s MD Paul Nero said: “Radio Exe has always
Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) has been had a strong commitment to high-quality local
MORE RETRO-RADIO: More Radio is launching running for three years. Until now it has been news provision, and we’re thrilled that the BBC
a new spin-off station playing music from the operated in Devon by Reach, publishers of local has entrusted us with this important journalistic
70s, 80s and 90s called More Radio Retro. More’s papers such as the Western Morning News, endeavour. It’s a thoroughly commendable
parent company, Total Sense Media (previously Express and Echo, and Herald Express, and scheme and we’re proud to be custodians of it in
known as Media Sound Holdings), says a recent websites such as Devon Live. From the 1st of Devon for the next three years. We’d also like to
increase in listeners to its main service has July, the three-year contract passes to Radio Exe. thank Reach for the classy way they have begun
inspired it to launch the extra station. More Radio An increase in the number of reporters in Devon the handover process and we’ll ensure they
Retro will be on DAB in Sussex from June and from that date will mean greater coverage of local receive the kind of excellent content they and the
former BBC Radio 1 presenter Jenni Costello councils and public sector organisations such as other LDRS partners across Devon deserve.”
has been hired to present the breakfast show. the health service, police and fire service. Most The winners of the other contacts have not been
More Radio was created in 2016 following the of the reporters across the scheme will continue made public as yet.
merging of Arrow FM, Bright FM, Sovereign FM to be employed by large newspaper groups such (SOURCES: BBC | Radio Exe | RadioToday)
and Splash FM. Founder and CEO Allan Moulds as Reach, JPI Media and Newsquest, although https://tinyurl.com/2d394uxp
told RadioToday: “More Radio has seen some eight new companies, including Radio Exe, have
excellent growth over the last few years, and we been successful this time around, marking the RADIO EXECUTIVES PUBLISH LEADERSHIP
hope that this new brand extension will broaden first time the contracts have been re-advertised. BOOK: The former Chief Executive and Content
our appeal even further.” Programme Controller Although Reach has lost the Devon contract to Directors of UKRD, William Rogers and Dave
Pete McIntosh added: “This has been a really Radio Exe, it has increased the number of LDRS Coull, and ex-GWR senior manager, Jonathan
exciting project to work on. As someone who reporters across the country from 64.5 to 75 and Bradley, have come together to publish a book.
grew up in the 80s and 90s, it is has been a lot of continues to be the largest employer of such Between them, they have gathered their business
fun rediscovering some of the amazing songs I journalists. In a statement, the BBC said: “The experience to write a new book on leadership,
remember listening to when growing up. More Local Democracy Reporting Service is part of the The No Normal Leader. The book – published
Radio Retro will be unashamedly pop – playing a Local News Partnerships, a strategic agreement this month and available through Amazon in
wide selection of upbeat, singalong tunes from with the News Media Association which sees paperback, or via Kindle – takes a swipe at
artists that defined their generation, as well as the BBC fund journalists cover the work of local the concept of the ‘new normal’ and sets out
shining a light on some rarely-heard forgotten councils and other local public bodies. LDRs a leadership philosophy based on maximum
classics.” Total Sense Media Limited also owns provide vital scrutiny of decisions made on the readiness and cultural engagement. Dave Coull,
Isle of Wight Radio, Sussex Living and The public’s behalf, with more than 200,000 stories who worked with William Rogers as Content
Beacon magazine. Greatest Hits Radio Sussex, delivered since the launch of the service in Director at UKRD before it was acquired by Bauer
which launched last year in place of Spirit FM, January 2018. The journalism they produce is in 2019, said that he had found the whole process
also plays music from the 70s, 80s, and 90s. It made available for free to the BBC and more than of working collaboratively on a book hugely
is available on 96.6 MHz, 102.3 MHz, and 106.6 1,000 individual news titles or outlets across the beneficial.
MHz FM. country.” Exeter’s MP, Ben Bradshaw, first mooted (Sources: Amazon | RadioToday | media.info)
(SOURCE: More Radio | RadioToday) what was then called top-slicing of the licence https://tinyurl.com/w79s65nf
https://tinyurl.com/ys3s68uv fee to fund other providers of local news when ttps://tinyurl.com/chaumzrx

Review
RFINDER
Tim Kirby
[email protected]
Tim Kirby reviews the RFinder B-1

dual-band DMR 4G/LTE transceiver/
smartphone combo, looking at the
setup and key functions of this new
hybrid radio device, and previewing
some new features under development
at the moment.
I have recently had the opportunity to use

one of the RFinder B-1 transceivers at some
length, both in my shack and outdoors
(Figs. 1 and 2). This device can be briefly
described as a dual-band (144/432MHz)
amateur bands transceiver capable of
both FM and DMR transmissions. It has
an innovative approach to DMR, which I
will cover shortly.
Additionally, the B-1 is an Android
smartphone (it runs Android 8.1), capable
of making phone calls, sending messages
and, crucially, running Android apps, which
may be installed from the Google Play
store, or anywhere else you can install the
appropriate APK files from.
I have had the opportunity to use a couple
of phone/transceiver units before. Although
they have been interesting, they have been
a huge compromise in functionality as a
phone and as a transceiver. The B-1 does
better on this score.
With power levels of 5 and 1W on
144/432MHz, you can make some very
reasonable contacts.
As a phone, it works well too.
The version of Android on the B-1 is not
the newest, by any means. 1
However, it is adequate and up-to-date
The RFinder B-1

enough to run any of the applications that I
have tried to date.
The first thing to be aware of is the
price: At £999.95, the B-1 represents a very
significant investment.
On the other hand, there is a lot you can
do with it and a lot of fun to be had. It will be Dual Band DMR
4G/LTE Transceiver
up to you to decide whether it is worth the
money for what you want to do with it.
Unboxing and Setup

Unpacking the B-1 – it arrives nicely
packaged – the first impression is of a battery clip; some users have experienced watertight. Initially, I thought that this
fairly sizable unit (Fig. 2). Not a problem issues with them snapping (RFinder meant I had done something wrong.
if you are treating the unit as a handheld, have replaced them, without charge, It did not; this always appears as a
perhaps, but maybe worth thinking about a as I understand it, and later production warning for you to check. From there, the
little more if you are treating the unit more models have stronger clips that do not phone boots into a familiar Android home
like a phone, especially by the time the set exhibit the problem). screen. I quickly connected up my Google
has the dual-band 2m/70cm antenna on it. Switch the rig on and you will see a account to the set and was able to install
Clipping the battery in is fairly message to say that if the battery is apps as I wished from the Play Store.
straightforward but be careful with the not properly fixed on, the set will not be Pre-installed on the phone were three

Review
TIM KIRBY
Fig.1: The RFinder B-1 dual-band DMR 4G/LTE

Transceiver / Smartphone.
Fig. 2: Outdoor use of the RFinder B-1.
Fig. 3: The RFinder B-1 and my Yaesu FT-2D.
Fig. 4: A Swiss-Army-Knife type of radio/ phone?
RFinder apps; Ham, IMEI and Pro. As a

radio amateur, you will want the Ham app.
Although it is preinstalled, depending on
how long your unit has been sat on the
shelf at the retailer, it might be out of date,
so just to be certain, delete the Ham app
and reinstall it from the Play Store. After
that, it should update automatically. The
B-1 is also capable of updating its firmware
over the air (FOTA) and again, if your unit
has been sat on the shelf for some time,
this will be worth doing and be aware that,
if several upgrades are required, this may
take some time.
When you start up the Ham app, you will
need to register for an RFinder account.
There is a month’s free trial, and after that, it
is $12.99 a year.
You might be wondering why you pay
nearly £1000 for a radio, and then some
more. This is a fair question.
The subscription provides you updates
to the repeater directory, which is
automatically downloaded onto the B-1.
The good thing about the repeater
directory is that the B-1 uses its GPS to
determine where it is and thus, the nearest
repeaters to you. This is a very powerful
feature, especially if you travel a lot or
operate portable. Better still, in the case of
DMR repeaters, the B-1 can download a list
of talk groups, so you can just select the
talkgroup you require from a list. 2
Features and offset frequency (300Hz seems the opti- charging in the late afternoon.
Memory Management mum) to get the best audio quality). It does When at home, I leave the B-1 in its charg-
The repeater directory is comprehensive not seem to be necessary to have the offset ing cradle, monitoring and just pull it out
and increasingly accurate. However, as on a ‘regular’ repeater. Unfortunately, at pre- when I want to make a contact.
user feedback incrementally refines it, you sent, the offset is not saved into memory, Unfortunately, at the time of writing,
can manually program channels and store so you will have to apply it manually when the B-1 does not support the scanning of
them into memories. You can also back up you need it. It is but the work of seconds. memory channels.
your memories into the ‘Cloud’, for added Squelch on the B-1 can be quite ‘tight’ This is quite an omission, but Bob
security (this is recommended before per- and if you do not set it at its lowest level, Greenberg W2CYK, the man behind RFinder
forming a firmware update, for example). the B-1 can give the impression of being a says that they are working on it, although
In the case of DMR, manual programming little insensitive. In fact, on both DMR and you will only be able to scan FM chan-
allows you to select frequencies, timeslot, FM, sensitivity was reasonably similar to nels in a bank, or DMR channels in a bank,
colour code and talkgroup. other devices I have in the shack, although but not switch from one to another, as it
There is also a ‘promiscuous’ mode. This perhaps just slightly less sensitive than an would be too slow switching from one
allows you to listen to ANY DMR traffic on Anytone AT-878 for DMR and a Yaesu FT- mode to another.
the selected timeslot, rather than a single 2DE on FM (Fig. 3). Bob is an enthusiastic innovator, and
talkgroup. Very useful if you do not know Battery life is fair. Perhaps because the it is always a pleasure to speak with him.
which talkgroups are carried on a repeater. large colour screen needs a bit of power, He provides the vast majority of support
If you use the B-1 through a digital radio I found that, if I was monitoring a channel for the RFinder products and is proactive
hotspot, as opposed to a repeater, you will and having some occasional RF contacts about customer service and uses social
probably find that you need to set a small through the day, the battery would need media channels to good effect. This is the

Review
TIM KIRBY
positive side of dealing with a small com- would expect from Zello was very good on with the Beta release suggest that this will
pany. The negative side, of course, is that if both receive and transmit. work very well, and I am excited about us-
Bob gets busy, then responses may not be I also tried the Echolink application which ing it more fully.
quite so quick. worked very well. For some reason, the au- The B-1’s native RoIP functionality al-
dio quality on Echolink was slightly ‘woolly’ lows you to connect to Brandmeister DMR,
The B-1 as a Smartphone on transmit. Not disastrous by any means, but for the other digital voices modes, you
There is room for two SIM cards in the B-1. but not quite as good as I had hoped. Given can install the DroidStar app onto the de-
I only used one, a data-only SIM, but you that Zello was alright and Echolink was not, vice. This will allow you to do the same
could use a data/voice SIM if you wished it could be something in the Echolink app thing, in a separate app. You can connect
to use the B-1 as your phone as well. I think causing the issue. to D-STAR, DMR, YSF, NXDN, M17 networks
the B-1 is a little large to use as a ‘regu- Bob Greenberg has been planning to in- through the app.
lar’ mobile phone, but that will depend corporate Radio over IP (RoIP) functional- The downside is that the received and
on your use case. ity into the B-1, and work has been ongo- transmitted audio is not of very high qual-
The B-1 will not work on 5G networks but ing for some time. At the time of writing ity, because – unlike the native RoIP func-
works well on 4G and 3G networks. I used this, I have been able to test a Beta version, tionality – DroidStar uses a software co-
the review model on the O2 carrier with- which works well. By the time you read this, dec, whereas the native RFinder app uses
out any problems. Of course, you can also the new functionality should have been re- a hardware solution. DroidStar is certainly
connect the B-1 to Wi-Fi which works well leased in the form of updates to the app and suitable for monitoring or a quick QSO. This
around the house. the ROM on the unit. functionality is very enjoyable, and I liked
With this being an Android smartphone, the ability to listen to a DMR talkgroup, with-
you can, of course, run other Android apps RoIP and Brandmeister out a hotspot or repeater available.
on the device. Zello, for ‘Network Radio’ This will allow a B-1 user to connect to the Other Android apps you might consid-
works well because the B-1 has two PTT Brandmeister DMR network through the er running include APRSDroid. This allows
buttons, you can use one for 2m/70cm and mobile Internet or Wi-Fi, even if there is no you to monitor APRS traffic, send mes-
the second for Zello. Audio quality as you DMR repeater or hotspot available. Tests sages, and so on. Note that at present, this

Review
TIM KIRBY
Radio News
MODERNISING A GLOBAL MAGNETIC
PARTNERSHIP: For 30 years, INTERMAGNET,
a worldwide network of ground-based
observatories, has aided advances in
navigation, precision drilling for oil and gas,
and mitigating space weather impact on
technology. INTERMAGNET supports free data
exchange between nations and the creation of
geomagnetic data products by scientists and
others.
It also advises institutes on establishing new
magnetic observatories and on upgrading
and maintaining existing facilities. The
program has now been operating for more
than 30 years and, as of 2019, provides access
to geomagnetic data from 129 magnetic
observatories around the world […].
(SOURCE: EoS Science News | EoS Buzz
09/04/21 | Love, J. J., and A. Chulliat (2013),
‘An International Network of Magnetic
Observatories’; Eos Trans. AGU, 94(42):
373–374).
https://doi.org/10.1002/2013EO420001
https://tinyurl.com/2et49ya4
RADIO AND THE RETAIL BOUNCE-BACK:

Radiocentre reports that Entertainment,
Leisure, and Retail sectors in the UK are
gradually reopening their doors to the
public following lengthy closures due to
lockdown. But how can they ensure that their
customers will return as a result? Research
from Radiocentre, the industry body for
4 commercial radio, highlights the importance of
re-connecting with consumers using radio to
all takes place through the Internet and These issues are, in my opinion, ‘show- bounce back post lockdown. According to the
APRS-IS servers. Bob Greenberg has plans stoppers’; there is nothing you can- recent Radiocentre research, entertainment
to enable the B-1 to talk to APRSDroid so not work around. and leisure brands can benefit from radio’s
that it can send and receive APRS messag- Having said that, if you are someone ability to reach 40% of people while they are
es over the air. who likes things ‘just so’, then the B-1 may relaxing, as this is when people are more likely
You could also try SSTV applications, for not be for you. to be open to messages about how to spend
example, to try and decode SSTV transmis- By contrast, if you like ‘experimenting’, their free time.
sions from the International Space Station and have a reasonable grasp of Android, Radio can significantly boost awareness, brand
(ISS), decoding audio off air from the B-1 ra- as well as DMR/FM radio, you will love relevance and consideration for entertainment
dio using the smartphone’s microphone. the B-1. A real positive for the B-1 – and and leisure brands. Additionally, Retail brands
It will not yield the greatest results, but it a unique feature in this market – is the that are opening up their doors to the public
ought to work! There are also apps to indi- ability for the radio to operate on DMR again can also use radio to engage with
cate your locator (grid) square and all sorts without a codeplug. consumers in the right place at the right time.
of possibilities. I have found, using the B-1 over an ex- The medium can reach people in shopping
tended period, that I use it often, as a mode or before the point of purchase while they
Overall Conclusion ‘Swiss-army-knife’ kind of device, capa- are travelling to the shops. Radio can also help
To sum up, the RFinder B-1 is not without ble of doing many different things (Fig. 4). to build a bond between the retail brand and
its quirks. There are a few software bugs The price point at just under £1,000 means consumer, as the average retail radio campaign
that have yet to be ironed out. For exam- that the radio is not going to be a ‘casual’ boosts brand trust by 23%.
ple, occasionally, the RFinder app seems to purchase for anyone. However, I do hope I (SOURCE: RadioWorks Group | Radiocentre
stop talking to the radio, so you may think have given you sufficient information to de- Newsletter)
that you have changed frequency to anoth- termine whether or not the B-1 would be a https://radioworks.co.uk
er channel, when, in fact, you have not. good and enjoyable addition to your station. https://tinyurl.com/sbdfm5yj

Digital Radio
Kevin Ryan
[email protected]
Kevin Ryan reviews the Sandstrøm

Internet Bluetooth DAB radio with
Spotify Connect, looking at the ra-
dio’s setup and operation, main and
auxiliary features and key functions
of this versatile receiver.
Where do you look if you want to buy a

DAB+ radio? I suppose many of us start
online or browse a familiar local store.
High street retailers tend to have their
favourite brands that sell well.
For example, John Lewis has its own
range but also stocks Roberts, Sony,
Pure, Ruark and Revo; Argos mainly
stocks Bush and Roberts. Supermarkets
also stock selected models aimed at 1
impulse buying; some are labelled as their
The Sandstrøm
proprietary brands.
By searching more widely, you can find
other digital radio models from less well-
known manufacturers, often at a bargain
price, such as Daewoo, JVC, Philips, Nedis
and Groov-e, to name but a few.
Of course, it is a bit of a gamble trying
out a relatively unknown brand. From
Internet Bluetooth
my own experience, the real risk comes
from the build quality, usually in the form
of a flimsy case, or knobs and switches
DAB Radio
that do not last very long. Recently, I took
the plunge and purchased a hybrid radio that you can decode from the middle this powerful to keep the charge
branded as ‘Sandstrøm’ (SL-IBTB18, Fig. letters in the model number. My radio is time of the internal battery down to
1). I was mainly drawn to the ‘retro’ styling an SL-IBTB18 making it an Internet (I), around 5 hours. The charging process
and some of the technical features that I Bluetooth (BT) radio in brown (B), and stops automatically, and the manual
judge to be important. there is also a cream version (C making recommends disconnecting the radio
The radio’s manual can be accessed it SL-IBTC18). The ‘I’ versions are mains from the mains at this point to achieve
online at this URL: powered but also have a built-in lithium a better battery life. A full charge should
https://tinyurl.com/tn39cx5v battery. The battery is not accessible give a use time of 6 hours. The radio has a
– you would have to take the radio USB port whose only function is to charge
The Sandstrøm Brand apart to get to it. mobile devices.
I feel pretty sure that this is Curry’s ‘own I don’t know what the ‘18’ means, other
label’, like LOGIK and Matsui in the past. than (possibly) the year it was first sold. Design and Layout
Quoting the Currys’ website, “Sandstrøm The other variant is an SL-DBTB18 The front panel has a central ‘porthole’
products deliver style and performance making it a DAB+ only (D), Bluetooth with a colour display in the middle,
in all situations - blending simple, (BT) in brown (B). This model runs on speakers on either side and control
understated Scandinavian style with mains (or replaceable AA battery) power. buttons spaced around the porthole (Fig.
performance and function”. This is the physically smaller radio and 2). There are two multifunction buttons:
The radio is marketed as an ‘Internet looks very similar to the internet version one for volume/standby/mute and the
Bluetooth DAB Radio with Spotify- at first glance, so take care before other is tune/scroll/select. There are
Connect’. Therefore, it tunes DAB/DAB+ making a purchase. 10 presets for DAB stations, split in a 1
and FM and has both wireless/Wi-Fi (2.4 to 5+ way, allowing easy access to four
and 5GHz bands) and wired connections. Out of the Box favourite stations. The colour display
The receiver is finished in a leather effect I bought my radio online from Currys. screen is 70 mm wide x 50 mm high,
with a carrying strap on the top that does It came with a mains adapter and making it slightly bigger than many other
not look like it could be easily removed. instruction manual. The adapter is DAB+ radios where the screen is typically
There are some variations on this radio rated at 15V/2.4A. I think it is probably about 57 mm wide x 47 mm high.

Digital Radio
Fig. 1: The Sandstrøm is a smart-looking digital The radio has an option in the DAB menu to
radio that supports DAB+ and accesses the only list Valid Stations. Using this option to
Frontier Silicon portal. sort the list instead of by Ensemble (mul-
Fig. 2: The Sandstrøm receiver boasts a clear tiplex) or (station) Name will remove the
display with function buttons arranged in a circle weaker stations.
around it.
Fig. 3: The Info push button cycles through these Improving Reception
pieces of information. LBC News uses all of them, In my test, four multiplexes came through
except DLPlus. strongly enough to listen to in comfort.
Fig. 4: The Frontier Silicon portal is arranged as Not surprisingly, the strongest was my
an expanding ‘accordion-type menu. local Berkshire multiplex; then the BBC
and D1 national multiplexes, followed by
Setting Up the Oxfordshire local multiplex. The SDL
I charged the radio for the recommended National multiplex can be the weakest of
five hours and started the setup on battery three national ones, but I tried three things
power. It did not take long for the power to improve reception using the signal error/
indicator bar to drop a segment making strength built into the radio.
me think that a slightly longer charge time First of all, users can access the multiplex
would be better. I found out that there is no by using the Manual Tune (channel 11A for
low battery warning, and the radio just shuts SDL) option and selecting a station on the 2
down suddenly. I think I got four hours of to- multiplex, such as talkRADIO. Check that
tal use from that initial charge. the antenna is fully extended and then try way by learning how to switch it on and
The radio uses a Frontier Silicon module a different angle from the vertical. Usually, off, selecting the radio modes, adjusting
and likes to run the Setup Wizard to con- the best angle is 45o from the vertical, so the volume and setting how the clock is
nect to the internet. First of all, there is a that the antenna looks like a ‘backslash’ (/). updated. After that, I find the Sleep Timer
privacy message, which you can exit using Angling the other way, as a ‘forward-slash’ (settings only from 15 minutes to 60
the Select button. If you have not set up a (\), did not work. In my case, the signal error minutes) very useful because I tend to fall
device like this before, the manual provides now dropped from 30+ to 5 (much better) asleep with the radio on. Readers might use
detailed instructions on setting the time and the number of signal strength bars dou- the radio’s twin-alarm function that can be
and connecting to your internet router or ac- bled. Interestingly, moving closer to the win- a buzzer or a radio station from DAB, FM or
cess point. Therefore, I will not cover this in dow made things worse, probably because the Internet, including the last station you
any detail here. the radio was then much closer to my PCs. listened to or one of the presets. Finally,
I opted to use the radio’s Ethernet/wired Experimenting a bit might give you several the settings controlling the switch-off time,
network and to set the time update to be more stations to listen to, but this involves a backlight and ‘inactivity-standby’ (up to
from a DAB signal. You need to press and lot of trial and error. 6 hours) might also be useful settings to
hold the Standby button for a few seconds get familiar with.
to turn on the radio. If the radio is using Station Scanning
mains power, switching it off will put the ra- The DAB menu has options for a (full) Scan, Internet Radio Functions
dio in standby mode unless you switch it off Manual Tune and Dynamic Range Control As I mentioned, the Internet radio mode
fully at the mains socket. In battery mode, (DRC). The Scan option searches for sta- uses the Frontier Silicon radio portal. You
the radio just switches off completely. tions from channel 5A to 13F, and the can happily use the radio without creating
Manual Tune lists all the channels in the an account on the portal and store 10
Basic Reception same range; plus, you can scan/rescan a stations in the preset buttons. Having an
The radio has a seven-segment antenna on single channel. This option is handy when account on the portal provides storage for
the usual screw attachment for DAB radios. there is an enhanced propagation (‘lift’) unlimited favourites and a much easier-to-
I prefer an F-type connector. However, this which might bring in stations from outside use search facility.
can be difficult to replace the antenna if the your area. An easy way to find the chan- The one the radio offers can be a bit
F-type socket is recessed. I look for this fea- nels in use in your area is to tune in to a tedious to use, but you will get used to it.
ture because I usually connect receivers to service. As you then press the Info button, The menu for the radio starts with Last
my DAB antennas using F-type connectors. the radio cycles through the available infor- Listened and Station List, and it quickly
Selecting ‘DAB’ for the first time puts the mation (Fig. 3). The DLS (Dynamic Label expands down many branches (Fig. 4).
radio into scan mode. I think I have shared Segment) is usually just a static display. The diagram shows that a station may
with you before that my study/radio room is However, some stations, like talkSPORT, well be found in different branches, and
on the north side of my house – in line with use a scrolling DLS to provide a few screens Frontier Silicon is always happy to deal with
the Oxford transmitter – while the south of information. possible errors.
side faces London and Hannington. The ra-
dio found and stored 120 DAB stations, but The Radio in Use Frontier Smart Portal
many of them were too weak to produce a The twin speakers give the radio a mellow With an account on the website, you can
signal for decoding. sound, which I liked. I spent a couple of browse available stations and podcasts and
The weaker stations will have a question pleasant hours listening to Boom Radio UK link up your radio to your favourites.
mark before the name in the station list. on DAB. The radio can be used in a basic https://smartradio.frontier-nuvola.net

Digital Radio
ALL PICTURES: KEVIN RYAN
All Stations > Dynamic Label LBC News – Where the

Segment (DLS) News Never Stops
Last Listened Highlighted >
Africa >
Station List My Favourites > Popular >
Asia > Programme Type News
Local UK > [genres…..]
Europe >
Stations > D1 National Freq: 11D
Internet Only > Multiplex Name 222.064 MHz
BBC >
North America >
Podcasts > Location
Oceania > Signal Error & Signal error: 13 Signal
My Added Sites Genre > Signal Strength Strength bar(20 segments)
South America >
Search Stations Bit Rate: 24 kbps
Bit Rate, Codec
Popular Stations > Codec: AAC Channels:
and Channels Mono
My Favourites >
New Stations >
COVID-19 > Today’ Date:
Today’s Date 09/04/2021
Location >
Genres >
DLPlus No info
Search Podcasts
3 4
Radio stations use audio-encoding other nects to several audio sources; unlike the DRM specifications including a simplifica-
than MP3 and AAC. I discovered the HLS au- Majority Pembroke, for example, you cannot tion of the main standard.
dio (HTTPS Live Streaming) format used by connect a drive to the USB to play music or https://www.etsi.org
both the English Services of Radio Jordan connect to audio stored on a PC. However, WorldDAB issued a set of guidelines on
and the Arabic service of Radio Oman. The to me these are ancillary features; they do what they call Aftermarket Devices This
portal tells you if the stream is incompatible; not detract from an excellent digital radio. is the case where a DAB receiver is retro-
if you use the radio for your searches, incom- fitted to an older car that probably has an
patible stations are not listed. The stream Future DAB Receivers AM/FM radio. The guidelines are more or
did not play on either my Windows 7 PC The Sandstrøm is a nice digital radio, and less adopting the ETSI receiver specifica-
or my iPad Mini. it is a variation on a theme. Much work is tion while providing some tips on the type of
being done on the next generation of digi- antenna to use.
Other Features tal radio at the moment, and this develop- The Pure Highway model is one of
The radio accepts audio from external ment work might well change future digi- the best examples of what such a de-
sources using either Bluetooth, Spotify or by tal radio designs. vice looks like.
physically connecting a device to the Aux In I watched the radio-related presentations https://tinyurl.com/42swzavm
socket. The manual tells you clearly how to during the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union
set up these options. The radio also has a (ABU) April 2021 conference. These includ- Will Radios Change?
headphone socket and a ‘pinhole-type’ reset ed several talks on DAB and DRM. The idea of a ‘smart’ radio, linking together
button, in case it becomes unresponsive. https://tinyurl.com/munmmh8s DAB, FM and the internet is shaping the fu-
The conference has a mainly technical ture design of radios in vehicles, with high
UNDOK angle and offers lots of details on such is- resolution and large screens displaying lots
The radio works with the UNDOK app. You sues as specifications, design concepts and of information like weather maps.
can use this to control your radio from the technical trials. Nevertheless, I have picked Domestic receivers are lagging be-
comfort of your armchair, as it were. The out some of the ideas that radio listeners hind this design wave, and my only official
app found the radio without me having to might soon find in the radios in shops and on SmartRadio has the common tiny screen.
do anything, but both devices needed to the car dashboard. One or two manufacturers increased the
be connected to your local router or hot- ETSI, the European Standards Agency, is- size slightly, but will we soon see a new
spot. The app is pretty powerful and stable. sued an update to the receiver specification generation of devices with screens the size
However, it did lose connection with the for DAB/DAB+ for both domestic and car ra- of a smartphone or a 7” tablet? I think it is
My Favourites internet station list, although dios. Many pages are devoted to the techni- more likely that most manufacturers will
the Frontier Smart Services Status option cal tests that a receiver has to meet on sen- opt for a solution that involves an app on
on the app reported server issues at that sitivity and interference and implementing your mobile phone.
time. The UNDOK app is available on both the Emergency Warning System. The main One of the unique selling points (USPs)
Apple and Android. change is that receivers in Europe must now of smart radios is what designers call cross-
support all the different alphabets especially platform support. Simply put, whatever you
Other Features those in the EU. start listening to in the car you should be
The radio has twin speakers in a relatively They must also feature FM/RDS, and able to continue in the home without any
large enclosure, and I found the audio very car radios must offer the Service Following loss of content and vice versa. Of course, to
pleasant to listen to. You can shape the au- feature. Here, the radio retunes to different do this you need a working internet connec-
dio a bit more by using the Audio Equalizer transmitters to maintain the same audio. tion both in your car and in-home. That sce-
in the System Settings menu. The radio con- The same changes were made in the various nario presently seems a long way off...

International Radio Scene
HISTORY HACK
Chrissy Brand
[email protected]
T
he short wave schedules
changed as the northern hemi-
sphere moved the clocks to
summertime. There is still a
large enough community of
short wave broadcasters for this to require
a major logistical operation.
Meetings are held to allocate
frequencies, and the DX clubs and
specialists around the world reproduce
the new schedules to share with their
members and listeners.
It is something that many of us
probably take for granted, but it is quite
an achievement, repeated every six
months so that short wave frequencies
can be allocated to make the best of
propagation conditions.
The body that allocates the frequencies,
the High-Frequency Coordination
Conference (HFCC), has met online since
Covid-19 took a hold on the world.
The hope is to reconvene in person in
Sofia, Bulgaria, this August, to discuss
the B21 schedules.
You can see lists of the current season’s
frequencies, and the broadcasting
organisations who have registered
frequencies (which does not necessarily
mean they are using them) at the HFCC
website. See who is doing what, from the 1
Abu Dhabi Media Company to Yemen
Radio & Television.
http://hfcc.org/data/a21
In Australia, Bob Padula published links
to some of the A21 schedules online at his
Summertime, and
Mount Evelyn DX Report website. Whilst
some international broadcasters remain
strong and vocal on short wave, the former
the Listening is Easy
German giant, Deutsche Welle, does not.
As Bob wrote, “A mere shadow of its former Chrissy Brand looks at radio stations all over
self, DW has the shortest schedule list I
have ever seen from them, showing just
the globe, selects some media programmes and
Amharic and Hausa languages. At least they suggests global radio highlights to listen out for in
show the transmitter sites!”
To be fair, Deutsche Welle provides
the month ahead.
fantastic, thought-provoking and
professional radio and TV services, in In English guide to be the most useful Online, amongst the many schedule
languages including English. However, accompaniment on my summer travels. tools you can find, try the Shortwave
this is accessible online, rather than on the The A5 paper version is ideal to put in AM website, with its drop-down menu
traditional airwaves. a bag with your radio and to make up of broadcasters, languages, times and
Bob has published many other as you see fit. frequencies, projected onto a world map.
interesting articles about DXing on his blog, The PDF version is also a useful www.shortwave.am
it is well worth reading. resource, especially as you can perform
https://tinyurl.com/h59xwenu searches on it. Using paper and electronic Programme Picks
Other DX clubs and websites also versions together can offer me the best Producing a daily podcast is quite an
publish detailed schedules, of course. of both worlds! undertaking when you already have another
Personally, I find the BDXC Broadcasts www.bdxc.org.uk/bie.html job and family responsibilities, but two

POWER 87
Fig. 1: Alex and Alina present The History Hack

programme. Fig. 2: Power 87, free radio from
Cork in the Irish Republic.
Fig. 3: A plethora of quality programmes and
podcasts discuss radio.
Fig. 4: The ICQ / Amateur Radio Podcast has
clocked up over 340 episodes.
brilliant women, Alex and Alina have kept

The History Hack going for over 400 days.
Once a month, presentations duties are
handed over to two guys, Marcus and 2
Zack. The programme also goes by the KELLY SIKKEMA ON UNSPLASH
name of The Great History Hack (Fig. 1). 2

The professionalism and programme
content is of a very high standard and
would not be out of place on stations like
NPR, ABC or CBC.
This podcast offers a daily look at
historical events and themes, which is
usually fascinating and rarely dull. Episode
405, Down the Pub, debated the worst
family in history. Episode 396 explored the
history of colours, discovering ultramarine
and indigo’s origins, and how colour used
to denote wealth.
Episode 403, Pole Position, examined
Poland in World War II. Anuradha
Bhattacharjee spoke about Polish
refugees in India in the Second World
War. Well, known FM DXer Tim Bucknall
also appeared on the show, talking about
the work of the Kresy Siberia Foundation.
The Foundation was established in
order to inspire, promote and support
research, remembrance and recognition
of Polish citizens’ struggles in the Eastern
Borderlands and in exile during World War
II (1939-1945).
https://historyhack.podbean.com 3
Tim’s FM logs in Congleton Cheshire are
always impressive and he made the most but the other programmes are sometimes one-off broadcast.”
of some reasonable tropospheric openings in English, French or Spanish. I rather Graham also heard a station with a weak
in March, picking up FM signals from South like the station: it broadcasts a lot of talk signal on 5780kHz, “audible mostly by day,
East Radio in Mount Leinster, the Republic programmes, whereas on 891kHz you and playing music from the time before
of Ireland, on 95.6MHz, some 311 km from previously heard music.” rock and roll.” This was Harmony Radio,
his base and France Musique, 454km away www.radioalgerie.dz/rai/en which temporarily closed in February for
in Lille, on 98.6MHz. There was further information on relocation. Graham was amongst those
It was thanks to Tim that, last year, Radio Algérie at Ydun’s Medium Wave to hear Caroline Flashback on 576kHz.
I started listening to Power 87, a free Info website, which is always a place The station is heard on DAB in Norwich
radio station based in Cork (Fig. 2). This to check regularly for all the latest and Cambridge but the 567kHz signal
was after Tim had logged it on 87.5MHz. medium wave news. is presumably being relayed by a free
With American-style jingles, and a mix of https://tinyurl.com/8yjzstbc radio enthusiast.
upbeat pop, dance rap and hip-hop tunes, Graham heard the Firedrake jammer The many loyal Radio Caroline fans
Power 87 brings some sunshine even on again, after 0100 UTC on about 7580kHz, must be in a mellow mood these days, with
the greyest days. and stated, “You may remember that China Radio Caroline long since licensed and
https://power87.com used to jam stations using a recording successful on 648kHz. There is also one
Our Suffolk correspondent, Graham of the Firedrake opera, although now it weekend a month where Radio Caroline
Smith, noted that Radio Algérie usually uses the station CNR1. However, North is on 1368kHz, in partnership
Internationale broadcasts on 891kHz and the night after I heard the Firedrake jammer, with Manx Radio.
531kHz. He wrote, “The news is in Arabic, CNR1 was back, so it was probably a Two other observations from Graham

Date Time (UTC) Station Programme Podcast URL/ Stream/ Frequency
Monday, 2200 to 2230 Radio Exterior de España English Service https://tinyurl.com/dm6h2hv2 www.rtve.es/radio/radio-exterior and 11670, 15520 kHz
Wednesday,
Friday
Tuesday 1000 to 1100 Sheffield Live Radioactive, radio, film, book reviews https://tinyurl.com/svweczz7 https://web.sheffieldlive.org and 93.2 MHz
Wednesday 0500 to 1000 Radio Jamaica Life & Love Unleashed with Caleen Diedrick https://tinyurl.com/3nj8kcty http://rjr94fm.com/live.php
Friday 2000 to 2200 Groove City Radio, Glasgow TFI Friday, house and groove with Cazmac Tune In, Alexa, Sonos et al https://tinyurl.com/axmhcwee and 88.6MHz
Saturday 2000 to 2300 Newstalk ZB, New Zealand The Sunday Session with Francesca Rudkin https://tinyurl.com/tnacydwd www.newstalkzb.co.nz/podcasts
Saturday 0850 to 0900 BBC World Service Over to You, talk back to the BBCWS and BBC Sounds App https://tinyurl.com/zvd3jvaw and DAB, short wave
0050 to 0100 challenge programme-makers
Sunday 0750 to 0800 CHRISTOPHER CZERMAK ON UNSPLASH
1750 to 1800
ICQ PODCAST
Table 1. My top listening recommendations for the

month ahead in international radio.
are that Czech station Radio Dechovka

stopped broadcasting on 1233kHz but
remains on 792kHz. Bulgarian station BNR
Horizont plays some interesting music and
can be heard at night on 576kHz.
4
You’re Fired!
With two new right-wing television A1 Condition called Music Becomes Eclectic, blending,
channels being set up in the UK – GB What a difference a letter makes: One “relaxing, thoughtful and just plainly
News and Rupert Murdoch’s News UK A1 Radio website will lead you to vintage outstanding music.” This could be anything
TV – we may see an increase in bigotry radios in the USA. Another A1 Radio from 1930’s Blues to contemporary artists,
against ethnic minority and other website belongs to a Cambridgeshire creating, “the perfect medium to transport
marginalised groups. internet radio station. They are at opposite the listener into a world where only the very
I am sure we would all agree that casual ends of the radio fields, but I am glad to best music from the very best artists will be
sexism or racism needs to be challenged. know about both. heard and maybe the occasional film clip.”
There is a minority of radio presenters In the US, Mike’s Restored Radios www.a1radio.com
around the world who disagree, so it is Collections is a website that was last www.a1radio.co.uk
refreshing when they are pulled up for it. updated in 2008. However, it is still out
Australian radio host of many decades, there for those interested and includes Media Programmes Revisited
Jeremy Cordeaux, was fired from station wooden radios such as a mid-1930’s Last year I wrote about six media
FiveAA when he overstepped the bounds Berkshire and a 1940’s Silverstone. The programmes to be heard on the air
of public decency in March. Brittany Bakelite era is represented by several (RadioUser, September 2020: 24). As you
Higgins was allegedly raped by a colleague radios that I had little knowledge of, like would expect, countless other programmes
at Australia’s Parliament House and a 1946 Northern Rainbow 5000 and a discuss radio broadcasting, so I thought it
Cordeaux’ response was to state, “But I just Stewart Warner A51T3 from 1947. was a good time to investigate a few more.
ask myself why the prime minister doesn’t A1 Radio has been on the air (well, In the USA, the Radio Ink podcast started
call it out for what it is, she was a silly girl technically, they have been online) since slowly, with its first episode last summer.
who got drunk.” 2011. With a 24-hour a day schedule, A1 But it sprang into life again in March, with
https://tinyurl.com/3fxcjsav Radio has a wide range of presenters two new episodes. One looked at the
Another shocking example of what a and shows. As well as using “the highest radio recovery of 2021 and Clubhouse, the
radio presenter thought was acceptable possible audio quality for home listeners invitation-only, audio-chat iPhone app.
occurred in Buffalo, New York, in March. and those on mobile devices”, the station Another consisted of an interview with
Radio Ink was amongst many online also caters for “listeners on limited data.” WCMF (a classic rock station in Rochester,
outlets to cover the story. “Rob Lederman There are opportunities for people to New York) presenter Dave Kane, retiring
was quickly fired from hosting the 97 Rock take up presenting roles at the station, after forty years.
morning show in Buffalo after he compared regardless of experience. Could this be an Radio Ink is a reputable producer of news
toaster settings to the tone of Black exciting new direction for you? in print and online about the radio scene,
women’s skin on the air. Lederman said he I enjoyed the Trance Special programme mostly from a North American angle. In
may get into trouble for saying what he said, with DJ Steve Franklin, but the music heard the podcast, editor Ed Ryan interviews
then described how he likens his toaster on the station is very much down to each successful radio station owners, managers
settings to women he finds to be attractive. presenter’s tastes. and on-air hosts.
He then mentions the names of Serena Smartie’s 90s, 00s and Now sees Nikki https://tinyurl.com/23mpp9h2
Williams and Halle Berry.” Smart reliving her younger years, with In the UK, Paul Kerensa hosts a regular
https://tinyurl.com/79w33f8y requests and memories. Meanwhile, Dave programme that delves into the history of
Francis hosts a two-hour extravaganza some of radio’s forgotten pioneers. The

British Broadcasting Century has so far

educated listeners with a re-enactment
of parliamentary broadcasting coverage
Radio News forced the closure of around 1,300 schools in
central and northern regions. But pandemic-
related measures shuttered schools across
from 1922; a programme on Gertrude MARITIME RADIO’S SECOND BIRTHDAY: the country for most of 2020, leaving many of
Donisthorpe, who was one of the world’s Maritime Radio is marking its second birthday the most vulnerable young people unable to
first female broadcasters and arguably on 20th April by holding a 25-hour radio show. access education. UNICEF has been distributing
Britain’s first DJ. The first episode came Starting at 11 pm on Monday 19th, the non-stop solar-powered radios in conflict-affected areas
out a year ago and looked at pioneers broadcast will see all the Maritime crew taking to vulnerable households and listening groups,
from Morse to Marconi. part in presenting right through until midnight in which as many as 15 young people can make
https://bbcentury.podbean.com the following night. The station says there will use of the same radio. The devices provide an
The See Radio Differently podcast be prizes to be won, as well as some surprise educational lifeline for those who might other-
started in 2017 and looks at issues from outside broadcasts throughout. Duncan Martin, wise be cut off from classes and complement the
a UK perspective. Although it has been Maritime Radio’s Managing Director, said: “Two efforts of temporary learning spaces that have
dormant since last September, there are years have flown by! We’re so proud of what we been established at sites for internally displaced
over sixty episodes to work your way have been able to achieve, bringing real local persons to ensure that children can continue to
through. The first episode had a chat with radio to thousands of listeners in Greenwich and learn in safety. :
the voice of the X Factor Peter Dickson and across southeast London and northwest Kent. (SOURCE: UNESCO | UNICEF)
dissected voice recognition technology I hope everyone will tune in to listen to what is https://tinyurl.com/3e9aa8wj
with Radioplayer MD Michael Hill. going to be a brilliant celebration of our second
In the most recent episodes reported birthday. The Maritime crew live locally and all RADIOUSER, MAY 2021 ( TABLE OF CON-
from last September’s Tuning In, Back work hard to broadcast our programmes and TENTS): While the item on European Private
to Business conference, Author Ian local news from Shooters Hill to the places and Short Wave Radio Stations did appear on page
Leslie spoke about the role curiosity people we know. This last year has been very 17 (as advertised) the Feedback & Corrections
and conflict can play in boosting testing, as it has for everyone, but we were able to section was published on page 59. I am sorry
organisational performance. Financial keep broadcasting and providing local news and for the confusion, and my thanks go to reader
expert and broadcaster Susannah Streeter information to our 30,000+ listeners throughout, Rob Browning G4UMW, for pointing this out. In
provided an economic overview of the from home, and the studios. We hope to welcome Tony Smith’s article on Special Wartime Radios
advertising sector. even more listeners to the station as a result of (pp. 38/9), the pictures of the two soldiers were
https://tinyurl.com/j4639syy this celebration.” Maritime Radio is a local radio reversed. The image in Table 2 belongs with
The Sound Off Podcast is a series station for Greenwich, south east London and Table 1, and vice versa. Apologies to our readers
based in Winnipeg (Canada). It consists northwest Kent on 96.5FM. and the author.
of interviews and discussions about (SOURCE: Maritime Radio)
broadcasting, podcasting and new media. https://tinyurl.com/y625344s LOW-POWER AM RADIO AND VACCINA-
It is hosted by Matt Cundill, a 20-year TIONS: In the March 2021 issue of Radio World,
veteran of the radio industry, who now 10 MORE STATIONS DISAPPEAR: Ten more the regular newsletter on the technology of radio
works with broadcasters and podcasters to local BBC radio stations are turning off their Me- broadcasting, you can read articles and com-
increase their respective audiences. dium Wave transmitters for good this year: BBC ment on how low-power AM radio provides doc-
www.soundoffpodcast.com Essex, BBC Radio Cambridgeshire, BBC Radio tors, nurses and volunteers with a helping hand
At WRMI, Jeff White presents Viva Devon, BBC Radio Leeds, BBC Radio Sheffield, in the current round of Covid-19 vaccinations.
Miami!, a programme in English and BBC Hereford & Worcester, BBC Radio Stoke, BBC Other content revolves around such topics as
Spanish. DX tips and letters are included, Radio Lancashire, BBC Radio Ulster, and BBC transmitters and modulation measuring devices.
along with international travel and Radio Foyle will be on FM and digital-only in May https://tinyurl.com/m5aeu6bk
information about Florida. It can be heard and June 2021. Besides, BBC Radio Wales and
on 9955kHz throughout the week, and also BBC Radio Gloucestershire will reduce AM cover-
live on the WRMI website. AWR Wavescan age. The BBC’s intention to close MW transmit-
and Glenn Hauser’s World of Radio are two ters was first announced ten years ago in 2011.
other DX and media programmes that are In 2018 the corporation commenced with these
also broadcast on WRMI. and continued them in 2020 across Scotland,
www.wrmi.net Wales, and England.
http://wrmi.listen.creek.fm/stream (SOURCE: ICQ / Colin Butler).
ww.facebook.com/wrmiradio https://tinyurl.com/569wzsyk
The ICQ Amateur Radio Podcast has
been around for a few years. The UK based RADIO-BASED LEARNING GETS ITS DAY
operation, backed by donations, offers a IN THE SUN IN MALI: Persistent insecurity
programme every fortnight, covering news, in central and northern Mali has helped fuel
technical issues and the hobby in general, a protracted humanitarian crisis, disrupting
alongside listeners from around the world access to education, health and other services,
(Fig. 4). Episode 344, The Joy of VHF and and displacing more than 300,000 people –
Above, included RadioUser contributor Tim more than half of them children. Covid-19 has
Kirby (GW4VXE). compounded the problem. Before the pandemic,
www.icqpodcast.com direct threats and attacks on education had

TV & Radio: Past & Present
Keith Hamer
[email protected]
Garry Smith
Wireless Telephony,
[email protected]
Keith Hamer and Garry Smith delve

into the early days of radio, expand
Graphic Design 2.0,
their coverage of TV graphic design,
and offer the official reason why
BBC national radio stations have
& the BBC TV Symbol
disappeared from the popular TuneIn
app. particularly those which employed an
alternator to generate the high-frequency
In wireless telephony during the early oscillations directly. In 1903, Reginald
1920s, it was realised that – to reproduce Fessenden (1866-1932) produced the first
the notes of music and the voice machine of this type (cf. The Spectrum
(frequencies from 30 up to 10,000 per Monitor, September 2018; Caldwell, S.
second) – the Hertzian waves employed (2020) ‘Reginald Aubrey Fessenden: The 1
had to be of sufficiently high frequency to First Voice of Radio’; Radio User, May 2015:
give many high-frequency oscillations to 50-53).
each low frequency, and that they must be Others, such as Ernst Alexanderson
‘continuous’ and not ‘damped’. If the waves (1878-1975) and Rudolf Goldschmidt
were damped, the ‘spark’ note would be (1876-1950) also produced machines of
superimposed on the telephony. various types for the same purpose.
The quality of reproduction would be so https://antiqueradios.com/superhet
bad as to be unrecognisable. However, the high initial cost and the
Fig. 1 shows a ‘spark-gap’ (‘damped’) limitations in frequency did not allow these
transmitter. The spark was generated machines to come into general use for
inside the small box shown in the centre wireless telephony.
of the picture. A ‘continuous’ (undamped’)
transmitter is shown in Fig. 2. Transatlantic Tests
It was the difficulty of producing The first transatlantic radiotelephony 2
continuous waves of sufficiently high tests were made in October 1915 by
frequency that held back the progress of the American Telephone and Telegraph
wireless telephony for several years. The Company and the International Western
problem was partly solved by the Danish Electric Company. However, it was during
engineer, Valdemar Poulsen (1869-1942; the First World War (1914-1918) that
Fig. 3). In 1902, Poulsen developed the significant progress was made in the
Singing Arc of William Duddell (1872-1917) design and manufacture of thermionic
to produce continuous waves. However, valves, and circuits suitable for use with
it was not until the thermionic valve gave them.
a much more simple and reliable method Broadcasting itself may date from
that wireless telephony was in any way the early part of 1920, when a ‘wireless
commercialised. A prototype thermionic concert’ was given at the Marconi 3
valve, invented by John Ambrose Fleming Works, Chelmsford, and was received
(1849-1945) in October 1904, is shown in at distances up to 1,500 or even 2,000
Fig. 4. miles. In February 1922, an experimental
The arc method was employed for station of the Marconi Company at Writtle,
wireless telegraphy for many years. Essex, under the direction of Captain P.
However, even for this purpose, it was P. Eckersley, began a series of weekly
gradually ousted by the thermionic triode. broadcast concerts which created such
It had several inherent disadvantages, interest that the Postmaster-General was
the foremost of which was the difficulty asked to provide a regular broadcasting
of confining the oscillations generated to service. This was done by the formation 4
the one desired frequency. Oscillations of the British Broadcasting Company in
of double and treble the frequency were November 1922. In the same year, regular By 1927, no one claimed that finality
generated, and unless special precautions programmes were broadcast from the had, by any means, been reached in over-
were taken, these were radiated and London Station from November 14th. In the all broadcast reproduction. However, the
caused interference to other stations. United States, broadcasting services had available scientific knowledge was such
Several other methods of producing already been in existence for two years at that if it had all been applied to the con-
continuous waves were devised, this time. struction of broadcast transmitters and

THE KEITH HAMER+GARRY SMITH ARCHIVE COLLECTION.
Vintage Wireless Equipment

This month’s trawl through vintage
copies of dog-eared newspapers and
magazines has unearthed the three-valve
Dunham “All-Wave” 51D Tuner (Fig. 5).
Table 1 contains the full description of the
equipment originally featured in a Dunham
advertisement, dated 1927.
These days, just the handsome furniture-
quality cabinet, lock and key would
probably fetch more than the original all-
inclusive price of 21 guineas!
Graphic Design Pioneers

In the May column (RadioUser, May 2021:
6 49-51), we discussed the early career of
Abram Games (1914-1996), in particular, his
eye-catching war-time posters. This month,
we focus on his iconic 1953 animated
5 on-screen BBC Identification Symbol and
complaints about a certain coffee-making
machine.
The Dunham Advertisement of 1927 5
“The Dunham ‘All-Wave’ Tuner increases BBC Television Symbol
Range and Tone and adds another valve to Abram Games detested the term
your receiver. Covering wavelengths from ‘logo’, which was often a misnomer. He
150 to 2,000, the ‘ALL-WAVE’ Tuner is simple designed numerous emblems, symbols
to operate and has one-hole fixing. Enthused
and corporate identities. He once said:
over by Wireless Journals, this amazing
instrument finally dispenses with coils and “Corporate identity is only a matter of use.
their accompanying complications. Complete The condensing of a company’s ethos into
with full instructions and Blueprint. Price one ubiquitous symbol that triggers an
9/6. Another brilliant star in the firmament of 7 association means that even a black hole
Dunham achievements is the C.S.D. 51 D. A would mean something, eventually.”
three-valve set of exceptional attributes, this Fig. 1: A spark-gap (‘damped’) transmitter. In 1953, he was commissioned by the
set has everything enclosed in a handsome
Fig. 2: Valdemar Poulsen’s continuous (undamped) BBC to design the first animated on-screen
cabinet that is fitted with lock and key. Valves
are protected by ‘windows’ from accidental transmitter. Fig. 3: The Danish engineer, Valdemar TV identification symbol (the BBC’s official
damage. The cabinet itself is a beautifully Poulsen. Fig. 4: A (prototype) thermionic valve, designation). To that end, he constructed a
decorated piece of furniture worthy of the invented by John Ambrose Fleming in October working model using piano wire, brass and
most exclusive home and is secured for 35/6 1904. Fig. 5: The Dunham three-valve ‘All-Wave’ flashing lights (Fig. 6).
deposit and 25/- monthly, complete with 51D Tuner, advertised in 1927. Fig. 6: Abram The symbol, accompanied by a piece of
valves, all batteries, and loud-speaker. As the Games with his animated working model using soothing harp music, was radiated between
set has no variable coil holders the expensive piano wire, brass and flashing lights, commissioned programmes. The viewing public fondly
litter of interchangeable coils is entirely done
by the BBC in 1953. gave it various nicknames including the
away with. Loud-speaker range almost without
limit. Complete set, all batteries, valves and Fig. 7: The BBC ‘Bat’s-Wings’ Identification Symbol. Cock-eyed Wonder, the Roving Eye (and
cabinet loud-speaker, 21 guineas. Marconi even The Thing), but is best remembered
royalty paid. For those who wish to construct a receivers, then the resultant loudspeaker today by the sobriquet, The BBC Bat’s Wings
wireless set de Luxe, we issue full instructions reproduction would have been a true pic- Identification Symbol (Fig. 7).
that include five pictorial diagrams, drilling ture of the original. The term ‘transmitter’ in In 1950, he complained to the Cona
sheet and advice on earth and aerial systems. 1927 was taken to include the microphone, Coffee Company that their coffee maker,
Every constructional detail is clearly explained
and the expression ‘receiver’ to embrace designed by James Napier in 1840, was
and with the assistance of the diagrams
amateurs will find pleasurable and profitable the loudspeaker, with their associated am- clumsy to use. He was challenged to re-
occupation in building this first-class set. plifiers in each case. By the mid-1920s, design it. After learning the art of metal
Full instructions sent post free for 2/9. C.S. broadcasting organisations existed in all molding and casting methods, he designed
Dunham (Late Radio Engineer to Marconi European countries and many other parts the elegant Cona Rex. This was exhibited
Sc. Inst. Co.). Member of the B.B.C. since of the world. Those in Germany and the at the 1951 Festival of Britain. It was
its inauguration. ELM WORKS, ELM PARK, USA were particularly active. Experimental made from surplus aluminium taken from
BRIXTON HILL, LONDON, S.W.2. WRITE NOW interchanges of programmes between the redundant warplanes, and heat-resistant
FOR FULL PARTICULARS.”
UK and America had already taken place. A glass.
[N.B. spelling has been left to reflect the
practices of the period; italicization has been short wave wireless link across the Atlantic In 1962, he produced an improved
dispensed with here – Ed.]. was used for relaying the American pro- version, using new and modern materials. It
grammes within the United Kingdom. was called the Table Model Cona.

Always being fascinated with engineering smartphones, tablets and other Internet to access ‘live’ radio using their voice,
from a very early age, in 1953, he decided to radio devices. There was initially some according to the BBC.
re-design the famous Gestetner duplicating confusion as to whether podcasts would Many licence fee payers find it
machine; the authors spent many years continue. unacceptable that the BBC national radio
using one to produce their first technical Consequently, thousands of listeners stations can no longer be received on
magazine. to all BBC national radio networks are domestic Internet radios, tablets and
Spurred on with his achievement, he went potentially being denied their favourite smartphones within the UK, especially
on to design his own copying processes. programmes, even though they are paying when listeners abroad can receive all the
His final invention was a pocket-sized, for the channels through the combined BBC radio stations.
disposable copying system that required no radio and television licence.
electricity. The stations have not disappeared for DX-TV & FM News
Abram Games, OBE, RDI, died in London technical or financial reasons – rather, The latest DX news, plus details of
on August 27th, 1996, aged 82. The Royal the BBC decided to stop broadcasting via changes to broadcast television and radio
Designer for Industry (RDI) is an honour TuneIn ‘live’, because TuneIn refused to services, is available online via the Radio
awarded annually by the Royal Society of allow the BBC to spy on listeners’ tuning Enthusiast website:
Arts (RSA) to designers of all disciplines habits. You can find a statement on this www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
who have, quote, “achieved sustained design matter by the director of BBC Distribution
excellence, work of aesthetic value and & Business Development, Kieran Clifton, at Stay Tuned!
significant benefit to society”. The RDI is the this URL: Please send archive photographs,
highest accolade for designers in the UK. https://tinyurl.com/2w75nar6 information, news or suggestions for
Only 200 designers can hold this prestigious Despite the BBC reassuring listeners future topics via the E-mail addresses
title. that “older internet radio devices that are shown at the top of this column.
powered by TuneIn will remain unaffected Unfortunately, we cannot undertake
BBC: Tuned Out of TuneIn! by this change”, this is not always true. to answer e-mails relating to technical
The BBC has removed all its national radio However, Google Home does not rely on issues, or provide general advice on
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Rallies & Events
Rallies & Events

Due to the Coronavirus situation, the Rallies calendar remains dynamic at the moment, and there will be more
cancellations and postponements. All information published here reflects the situation up to and including 12th May
2021. 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: www.radioenthusiast.co.uk
To get your rally or event onto this list, please, e-mail full details as early as possible, to: [email protected]
4 July
DARTMOOR RADIO RALLY (NEW
VENUE): The Yelverton War Memorial
Hall, Meavy Lane, Yelverton, Devon PL20
6AL. Open 10 am. Admission: £2,50. (FP
| TS | BB | R)
Roger: Tel: 07854 088 882
https://tinyurl.com/5hvrts7
[email protected]
11 July
EAST SUFFOLK WIRELESS REVIVAL
(FDARS IPSWICH RALLY): Kirton Rec-
reation Ground, Back Road, Kirton IP10
0PW (just off the A14). Opens at 9.30
am. Admission: £2. Trade tables from £
10. GB4SWR HF Station. (BB | CBS | CR |
RSGB | SIG | TS)
Kevin Ayriss, G8MXV
Tel: 07710 046846
www.eswr.org.uk
11 July
MCMICHAEL RADIO RALLY AND CAR
BOOT SALE: Reading Rugby Football
Club, Sonning Lane, Sonning on Thames,
Reading RG4 6ST.
https://mcmichaelrally.radarc.org
21-22 August 30 August 12 September
25 July BATC CONVENTION FOR AMATEUR (Bank Holiday Monday) EXETER RADIO AND ELECTRONICS
FINNINGLEY ARS CAR BOOT BRING- TV 2021: Midland Air Museum, Rowley HUNTINGDONSHIRE ARS ANNUAL RALLY: America Hall, De la Rue Way,
AND-BUY: Outdoor only. Near J2, M18 Road, Coventry CV3 4FR. AGC is Sunday BANK HOLIDAY MONDAY RALLY: Pinhoe, Exeter EX4 8PW.
Doncaster; starts at 10:00 am. afternoon. Test facilities available for Ernulf Academy, St Neots PE19 2SH. Pete G3ZVI
www.g0ghk.com/cbr21 5.6GHz/Portsdown/Minitiouner/Ryde/ Open 7 am (traders), 9 am (public). Tel: 07714 198 374
[email protected] power amplifiers/preamps). Stalls available. (FP | BB | CR ) [email protected]
[email protected] (L [streamed] ) Malcolm M0OLG:
http://www.midlandairmuseum.co.uk Tel: 01480 214 282 19 September
1 August www.hunts-hams.co.uk CAMBRIDGE REPEATER GROUP RAL-
WILTSHIRE RADIO AND CAR BOOT 29 August [email protected] LY: Foxton Village Hall, Harman Road,
SALE: Kington Langley Village Hall and MILTON KEYNES ARS ANNUAL Foxton, Cambridge CB22 6RN. Open
Playing Field, Kington Langley, Wilt- BANK HOLIDAY SUMMER RALLY: 5 September 9.30 am (7.30 traders). Admission £3.
shire SN15 5NJ. 9 am to 1 pm. Traders Irish Centre, Pavilion Manor Field, TELFORD HAMFEST: (BB | CR | RSGB)
welcome. Milton Keynes MK2 2HX. 10 am to 3 pm. Harper Adams University Campus Lawrence M0LCM
[email protected] [email protected] TF10 8NB Tel: 07994 197 2724
https://www.mkars.org.uk www.telfordhamfest.org.uk [email protected]
1 August www.cambridgerepeaters.net
THE 31ST KLARC GREAT EASTERN 29 August 12 September
RADIO RALLY: Gaywood Community TORBAY ANNUAL COMMUNICA- CAISTER LIFEBOAT RALLY:
Centre (off Gayton Rd.), King’s Lynn TIONS FAIR: Newton Abbot Race- Caister Lifeboat Station, Tan Lane, 24-25 September
PE30 4EL (NGR – TF638 203). 9 am to 3 course, Devon TQ12 3AF. 10 am Caister-on-Sea, Norfolk NR30 5DJ NATIONAL HAMFEST: Newark and
pm. Admission £3. (9 am D). Admission: £2. 9.30 am (8 am for sellers); Nottinghamshire Showground, Lincoln
Ted G4OZG Tel: 01553 768 701 (BB | CR | FP | RSGB) easy parking; access via car park Road, Winthorpe, Newark, NG24 2NY.
(Mob: 0794 683 8656) Pete: G4VTO Tel: 01803 864 528 in Beach Road. Raffle. (Decision due in June 2021)
http://www.klarc.org.uk/Home.php Mike: G1TUU Tel: 01803 557 941 The museum will be open. (CR | TI [22]) https://www.nationalhamfest.org.uk
[email protected] [email protected] Zane M1BFI Tel: 0771 121 4790)
BB Bring & Buy CBS Card Boot Sale CR Catering /Refreshments D Disabled visitors FP Free Parking L Lectures RSGB (RSGB) Book Stall SIG Special-Interest Groups TI Talk-In (Channel) TS Trade Stalls

054 Rallies.indd 54 18/05/2021 12:53

Rallies & Events
26 September
WESTON SUPER MARE RADIO SO-
CIETY 6TH RADIO & ELECTRONICS
RALLY: The Campus Community Centre,
Worle, BS24 7DX. Opens 10 am (visitors
[D: 9.30]) and 7 am (traders).
Dave G4CXQ Tel: 07871 034 206.
[email protected]
3 October
THE 48TH WELSH RADIO RALLY: Rou-
gemont School, Llantarnam Hall, Mal-
pas, Newport NP20 6QB. Opens 10.30
am (D: 9.30); Admission: £3. (BB | CR | L |
RSGB | TS | SIG)
Rob Evans MW0CVT Tel: 01495 220 455.
[email protected]
16 October
ESSEX CW BOOT CAMP: 3rd Witham
Scout & Guide HQ, Rear of Spring Lodge
Community Centre, Powers Hall End,
Witham, Essex CM8 2HE. Open 8.30 am
(registration). 9 am (public). Finish 4.30
pm. £10 with free soup/ drinks/ cakes.
General Information • Dover ARC ‘Hamzilla’ • Rochdale & District
• DX Zone: UK Amateur Radio Clubs: http://hamzilla.uk https://g0roc.co.uk
(CR | FP)
https://tinyurl.com/r8r39jj4 • Durham District ARS • Rugby Amateur Transmitting Society
Andy G0IBN Tel: 0745 342 6087).
• ICOM UK: Amateur Radio Clubs: https://g4euz.com/club https://tinyurl.com/2bez8eey
[email protected]
https://tinyurl.com/sc6tah7v • Exeter ARS • South Normanton,
• RSGB Club Finder: https://www.exeterars.co.uk Alfreton & District ARC
17 October
HORNSEA AMATEUR RADIO RALLY: https://rsgb.org/main/clubs/club-finder • Felixstowe & District ARS https://www.snadarc.com
Driffield Show Ground, Driffield YO25 • UK Radio Rallies: www.eswr.org.uk • Spalding DARS
3AE. Open 10 am. Admission: £2 (under www.g4rga.org.uk/All.html • Finningley ARS https://sdars.org.uk
14s free). Raffle. (BB | CR | CBS | FP) http://g0ghk.com • Stirling & District ARS
Les 2E0LBJ Tel: 01377 252 393 Selected Clubs & Events • Flight Refuelling ARS (FRARS) https://gm6nx.com
[email protected] • Andover Radio Amateur Club https://www.frars.co.uk • Stockport Radio Society
www.arac.org.uk/events.html • GMDX Convention https://www.g8srs.co.uk
17 October • ASRA https://tinyurl.com/vkumdjj6 • West London Radio & Electronics Fair
HACK GREEN RADIO SURPLUS https://asrarally.com • Leicester Radio Society www.radiofairs.co.uk
HANGAR SALE: Hack Green Secret • Bishop Auckland Amateur Radio Club https://www.g3lrs.org.uk • West Manchester ARS (Red Rose Rallies)
Nuclear Bunker, Nantwich CW5 8AL. https://www.barac.org.uk • Lothians Radio Society www.wmrc.co.uk/rallies.htm
www.facebook.com/HGsecretbunker/ • Callington ARS https://tinyurl.com/2fvu866x • West of England ARSs
www.callingtonradiosociety.org.uk • Moray Firth ARS https://westrally.weebly.com
7 November • CDXC Convention www.mfars.club • Wythall Radio Club
HOLSWORTHY RADIO RALLY: Hols- www.cdxc.org.uk/event-4213351 • Newbury & District ARS www.wythallradioclub.co.uk/2021
worthy Leisure Centre, Well Park, West- • Cornish Radio Amateur Club (NADARS) • Yeovil ARC
ern Road, Holsworthy, Devon, EX22 6DH. http://gx4crc.com www.nadars.org.uk/rally.asp https://tinyurl.com/x3a4hkpz
Open 10 am. Traders. (BB | CR | D) • Dartmoor Radio Club • Reading DX Meetings • York Radio Club
Howard M0MYB https://dartmoorradioclub.uk http://bdxc.org.uk/diary.html www.yorkradioclub.uk
[email protected]
BB Bring & Buy CBS Card Boot Sale CR Catering /Refreshments D Disabled visitors FP Free Parking L Lectures RSGB (RSGB) Book Stall SIG Special-Interest Groups TI Talk-In (Channel) TS Trade Stalls.
NEW SERIES WO
RLD OF TWO-WAY
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’S FAIRS
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Review: Shaman CB Aerials ■ PanAm Radio
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e
ce
Hearing in spa
The July issue is on sale on the 24th June 2021 FIRST TEST sdropping
Apollo 11’s eave ed
ELAD FDM S-3

project re-examin
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pact compa
Detailed review of idea l travel com ing
direct sampling widthis keenly-awaiteTheMea
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REVIEW
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AIRBANDS ATC
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UK military airf Distance lea toBUILD Your own
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New profile series begins A modern appr wave receiver
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look at RAF Northolt with a teur licencing
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Radio | Covid & Radio
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mitte rs | Radio
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rethe nder
054 Rallies.indd 55 The rise of your aerial me | TV & Graphic Desig
18/05/2021 12:53
MARITIME oceans
001 April front.indd
Antenna n
er Mini 1300
Display until 29th April 2021
1
The Moonrak its paces

nes’ on the s put through
Review
Keith Rawlings
[email protected]
The Vine Antennas
AS-OCF-404-HP
T
his month I am very pleased
to be able to bring to you a
review of the Vine AS-OCF-
404-HP off-centre Fed Dipole
(OCFD) for HF/6/4m (Fig. 1).
https://www.hamradio-shop.co.uk Keith Rawlings appraises the new Vine
https://tinyurl.com/df4rhxp4
This aerial is primarily intended for use
Antennas AS-OCF-404-HP off-centre Fed
on the amateur bands. It covers the 40, 20, Dipole, looking at its construction, ease of use
15, 10, 6, and 4m bands (without a match- and performance, from the points of view of
ing unit), and the 30, 17, and 12m bands
with one. both radio amateurs and SWLs.
It uses a Balun (balancing transformer,
an acronym for balanced-unbalanced) that There are variations to the design but Description
matches not only the main element but also if we make an OCFD for the 40m band The 404 (Fig. 1) arrived from Lamco in a
incorporates a 75Ω port to match a 4m el- using 66ft of wire and put the feed point at cardboard box and with a two-page leaf-
ement. Capable of handling up to 1kW of 33% (25ft) from one end, then we will get let, containing a description of the aerial
Peak Envelope Power PEP), it is 69 ft (21.03 harmonic points on the 20, 15, 10, and 6m and assembly instructions. The aerial con-
m) long. amateur bands (a classical ‘Windom’ type). sists of a weather-proof plastic box, which
With these specifications, it should be The impedance at this 1/3 point will be houses the BALUN, and the two main wire
compatible with most HF transceivers. around 200/300Ω. Rather than bringing an elements, pre-fitted to the box. They have
open-wire feeder back to a balanced AMU, large plastic insulators connected to each
An OCFD Explained a 4:1 Balun is used to give a match to 50Ω end. The strain on these wires is taken by
A conventional dipole is fed at the centre; coaxial cable. carabiner clips attached to an eye bolt on
when using coaxial cable, it is essentially a Quite often, 10ft of 50Ω coax is the top of the box.
single band aerial, although it can present connected to the BALUN with the other end Moreover, there are two pieces of what
a good match on its third harmonic. A 1:1 connected to a 1:1 common-mode choke. looks like hard-drawn copper for the 4m ele-
Balun is generally used at the feed point to This length of cable hangs down and ments pre-fitted to the box, and also some
prevent radiation from coax cable if this is provides some vertical radiation. plastic spacers used to suspend the 4m el-
used as a feeder. It is generally accepted This arrangement, referred to as the ement from the main wires.
that the OCFD works by taking a half wave- ‘Carolina Windom’, was developed by three I was pleased to note that the main ele-
length of wire and moving the feed-point radio amateurs, Wilkie WY4R, Lambert ment wires were plastic-coated and not
away from the centre to a position where WA4LVB, and Wright W4UEB. Their design made from open Flex Weave, which I am
the impedance is equal, or nearly equal, on improved on the original single-feed-line not a great fan of. The RF connection was
a multiple of harmonics of the fundamental Windom, bringing the feed arrangements by an SO239 plug.
frequency. up to modern thinking to provide an aerial Overall, the construction quality of the
This point is found at one-third of the that worked well for local and long-distance 404 was good, and the assembly was
length of the wire. contacts (Fig. 2). straightforward enough.

Review
FIG. 1: LAMCO. ALL OTHERS: KEITH RAWLINGS
Fig.1: The Vine Antennas Vine 404 Aerial.

Fig.2: Simulated SWR plot of a 40m OCFD over
‘perfect’ ground (bottom); ‘Carolina Windom’
(middle); conventional Windom (top).
Fig. 3: Three e-QSL cards, from contacts made.
Fig. 4: Analyser sweeps of the 404 at 20ft.
Fig. 5: A common-mode choke.
Fig. 6: The 404 re-suspended without support, for
taking photos.
Fig. 7: AN-SOF sample DXF file.
I laid out the two main wires to their full 2b

length and clipped the 4m element to the
spacers – and that was that. It just remained
to get the whole up in the air. This was easy
enough as the 404 is surprisingly light. I at-
tached an SO239-to-BNC adaptor to match
the feeder I was going to use. This was a run
of about 25ft of RG58, fitted with BNC plugs
on each end. This cable dropped vertically for
about 12ft.
I noted that the 404 has the BALUN placed
at 12ft from the end, probably to improve
matching on 15m.
On the Amateur Bands

Unfortunately, the months of January and 2 3
February are not the best of time to experi-
ment with aerials, especially as we had near ed, a tuner would be needed on 30, 17, and 12 This announced itself by a ‘clicking’ noise in a
flood conditions one minute and snow the meters. pair of PC speakers that were turned off, and
next. Due to this, I was not able to get the 404 My only radio with a built-in antenna sys- also by my unmodulated signal floating out
up at anything like a decent height. I was lim- tem tuning unit is my venerable FT990. I from the FT990 SP6 external speaker.
ited to a lightweight pole of some 20ft, from found that it had no difficulty tuning the 404 The same was true with the 857 because
which to suspend the BALUN. The short ele- on any of the HF bands, and it even matched this was also connected to the SP6. I added
ment of the 404 was fitted to a hook I have the 404 on 160 and 80m. a common mode choke to the feeder, a cou-
on a soffit running under the roof. I also used an FT857D with a Yaesu FC707 ple of feet before it entered the FC707 tuner,
The BALUN was supported on the pole, and ATU and experienced no difficulty in match- and this cured the problem. The choke was
the long element was run across the garden ing the 404 on 80m and above. I made a fair wound using five turns of RG174 over an
to a tree branch about 9ft off the ground. To number of contacts with Europe and western FT140-43 core. It was mounted in a water-
compound problems, my local noise levels Russia on 20m, using between 50 to 100W on proof box (Fig. 5).
since lock-down began have risen to atro- both my FT990 and FT857D. Out of neces-
cious levels. sity, the stations worked were strong signals For the SWL
Normally, this is not an issue, as I have free – otherwise, I would never have heard them The 404 (Fig. 6) is designed to have its har-
access to land that I can use as a test range. above the noise. monic spots on the amateur bands, and this
However, due to the lock-down at this time, Therefore, during the daytime, the 404 gave is where it will work best. To use the 404 on
I knew the landowner had restricted access excellent results with UK and EU contacts my transmitting set-up, I had to remove my
to his land. Therefore, all my tests were car- on 40m. I even managed to work 9K60OD doublet to get it out of the way in case they
ried out at home this time, which was a chal- Kuwait, which was especially pleasing. I even should inter-react. Because of this, I was un-
lenge. had a couple of ‘Inter-G’ contacts (work- able, at present, to make a direct one-for-one
I initially made a Voltage Standing Wave ing stations within the British Isles) on 80m. comparison.
Ratio (VSWR) sweep of the 404. With a matching unit, the 404 could also be I did, however, have a short SWL end-fed
The results are shown in Fig. 4. pressed into service on this band. set up, from a design under evaluation, and I
Resonant points on HF can be seen at 6.7, However, I made no contacts above 20m. was able to undertake some reception com-
14.3, 20.5, and 28.5 MHz. If there were any stations on, I could not hear parisons with this, although by no means in
Due to the height of the aerial at the time of them under the noise. I put out a few calls on terms of ‘apples-for-apples’.
measurement, I concluded that this is OK; the 6m FM but received no reply. My only radio I found that, on the HF bands, the 404 dou-
resonant frequency should rise as the height for 4m is a reprogrammed ex PMR box fitted bles up as a very good receiving aerial, return-
of the aerial is increased. to my Land Rover Defender which is out of ac- ing consistently better results than the short
Resonances at 52 and 72MHz were slightly tion at the moment. end-fed it was being compared to.
high in frequency but still well below the ac- I suffered some RF feedback on 40 and Below around 2MHz, results were similar.
cepted 2:1 SWR limit of most gear. As is stat- 20m, and when using powers above 50W. On the MW band, signals on the end-fed were

Review
4 5
2-4 S-points better. On HF, the overall noise

levels on the 404 aerial were a good couple of
S-points lower.
Conclusions
Despite the restricted conditions during the
time of my testing, the 404 came out of it very
well. It ideally needs to be mounted higher
than I was able to manage. The aerial is well
constructed. I found it simple to assemble
and put up, taking about 30 minutes from
start to operating.
Being lightweight, it does not need exces- 6
sively elaborate support and, if needed to do
so, it would be possible to ‘bend’ it into a small
garden, with minor performance penalties to
be excepted.
To take the strain off of the dipole elements,
especially if a heavy feeder is used (RG213),
the BALUN case needs to be suspended from 5
an insulated pole; insulated because the feed-
er can form part of the radiating mechanism.
As it stood, the SWR returned from the 404
here was not good enough for use without a
tuner on many of the bands. However, I do not
regard this as an issue with the design.
At the height I had erected the aerial, the
proximity of the short end to my house, and
the fact that it sloped towards the ground at
the far end, would de-tune most aerials, be-
ing more noticeable the lower the frequency 7
in use. This will always be the case, especially
with ‘pre tuned’ HF aerials in different environ- HF amateur bands, but who also needs some- functionality because DXF files can now
ments. thing for general-purpose listening as well. be imported into the simulator. This format
Users may find that a choke fitted on the The Vine Antennas AS-OCF-404-HP pres- (DXF) is used by packages such as AutoCad
feeder is beneficial, for the prevention of RF ently costs £159.95. and other CAD software. Therefore, this
on the coax shield getting back into the shack. My sincere thanks to the team at Lamco should make it easier to add complex
I was unable to test with more than 100W but for the loan of the review model. structures into AN-SOF.
see no reason to doubt the claimed 1kW PEP [to which I would like to add my warm I have not yet had a chance to fully try
capacity of the aerial. thanks too – Ed.]. the new version, but it should make adding
In short, the 404 enabled me to make many https://tinyurl.com/4jwuz629 structures like buildings, masts and vehicles
contacts. For licensed amateurs, it forms a much easier (Fig. 7).
useful multi-band radiator on all bands from AN-SOF Simulation Software In this context, the improved computation
40 to 4m capable of providing long-distance, Just as I was finishing this month’s copy, of antennas over real ground, and an addition
as well as local contacts. I had a notification of yet another update of a radial wire ground screen builder, are
It also doubles up as a respectable HF aer- for the AN-SOF aerial simulation software some of the features, which have been
ial for the SWL whose main interest is in the suite. This latest update adds significant promised for the immediate future.

Radio News
RADIOWORKS GROUP EXPANDS MEDIA
TEAM: RadioWorks Group, the leading radio
and digital audio advertising specialists, has
appointed Helen Haslam (Right) as Business
Director. Helen brings a wealth of experience to
the business having previously worked for some
of the UK’s top commercial radio businesses
and media agencies, including Bauer Media,
Communicorp, Guardian Media Group’s GMG
Radio and more recently Wavemaker North in
Manchester. Helen will work alongside our team
of audio specialists to help grow the business
and further strengthen existing relationships.
(SOURCE: RadioWorks)
https://tinyurl.com/6kbrzc7j
FREE CLOCK: Coping with the 24 hour UTC/

GMT especially now we are on daylight saving
time here in the UK can be problematic when
completing a log of hobby radio activity. Below
is a handy free clock that sits on your PC desktop
and displays digital time format. Here in the UK,
I set my PC to Reykjavik Time Zone so that I am
always looking at UTC/GMT. No daylight saving
in Iceland. RBN activity of G4PVB: Simply change my studying air pollution, there’s only so much to
(SOURCE: Bob Houlston G4PVB) callsign to yours or another via the link below. learn at ground level. So they’ve been taking
www.tinyurl.com/handyfreeclock (SOURCE: Bob Houlston G4PVB) advantage of aerosol data from NASA satellites
https://rbn.telegraphy.de/activity/G4PVB to link health outcomes with local air pollution.
RAOTA NEWS: The summer 2021 issue of the But only recently have NASA and epidemiologists
quarterly magazine of the Radio Amateurs RSGB ELECTION RESULTS 2021: The RSGB teamed up to start the space agency’s first
Old Timers’ Association (RAOTA) (OTNews) election results were announced at the AGM on mission focused on health. NASA’s Multi-Angle
has been sent to the printer and copies will Saturday 24 April 2021: Stewart Bryant, G3YSX Imager for Aerosols (MAIA) mission, scheduled
be received by members shortly. The Radio has been elected as President of the Society and for launch in 2022, will combine the expertise
Amateur Old Timers’ Association (RAOTA) aims will serve until the 2023 AGM. We congratulate of planetary scientists and epidemiologists to
to maintain the traditions and spirit of amateur him and welcome him as RSGB President. answer a question that, before now, has been
radio. Although we are interested in the history Dave Wilson, M0OBW has been elected as a largely impossible at a large scale: What kind of
and traditions of amateur radio we are equally Director of the Society and will serve until the air pollutant particles is most harmful to human
interested in the future of our hobby and have 2024 AGM. Congratulations to him and many health? Of the different types of air pollutants,
plenty of members using the latest equipment thanks to those Directors who have stood down particulate matter (PM), especially particles
and modes of transmission. Some seem to or reached the end of their term during the year. smaller than 2.5 micrometres (PM2.5), poses
think that to join RAOTA you need to have been Paul Devlin, G1SMP and David Hills, G6PYF some of the most severe health risks. These
licensed for 25 years to become a member, have been endorsed as nominated Directors of particles, which primarily form from combustion
but you don’t. Anyone with an active interest in the Society and will serve until the 2024 AGM. sources like fossil fuel use and wildfires, vary
amateur radio is welcome to become a member. Congratulations to them both. In Region 6, Liz in composition but are small enough to pass
There is no need to hold (or be qualified to hold) Cabban, GW0ETU and in Region 12, David De La from the lungs into the bloodstream. In the short
an amateur radio licence. We have several SWL Haye, M0MBD were elected unopposed, and their term, high PM2.5 levels in the air exacerbate
in our ranks. appointments start after the AGM. There were no respiratory diseases, whereas long-term
Contact: RAOTA Membership Secretary, 65 valid nominations for Region 2. Congratulations exposure can even lead to premature death
Montgomery Street, Hove, East Sussex, BN3 5BE to Liz and David. from heart and lung conditions. Scientists are
www.raota.org (SOURCE: RSGB | ICQ/Amateur Radio Podcast) predicting that climate change could worsen
www.rsgb.org PM2.5 concentrations in some regions, though
REVERSE BEACON NETWORK: Welcome to the concentrations could decrease where emission
Reverse Beacon Network. The RBN is a great new SATELLITE DATA TO MAP AIR POLLUTION sources are reduced. But even exposures
idea. Instead of beacons actively transmitting AND IMPROVE HEALTH: NASA scientists will be below what regulators consider dangerous are
signals, the RBN is a network of stations listening teaming up with epidemiologists in the agency’s associated with poor health outcomes, like
to the bands and reporting what stations they first health-focused mission. With satellite data, increased mortality in older adults.
hear, when and how well. SWLs may find it useful they will find out how air pollution affects health (SOURCE: EoS; Rocheleau, J., at URL below)
to track stations they have received previously. in cities around the world. For epidemiologists, https://doi.org/10.1029/2021EO157069

Maritime Matters
WWW.DOWN&DROMORE.ORG
Robert Connolly
[email protected]
O
ver the years, I have read several
reports of lives being saved at
sea by people from a different
country, or even from a different
continent. Sometimes this
has been down to a casualty being away
on holiday and using their smartphone to
contact a relation or friend to alert them
that they are in serious difficulties and
unable to contact maritime rescue services
in the area that they were on holiday in.
However, there have also been cases,
where a listener received a distress call
being transmitted from a different part
of the world and as a result instigated a 1
subsequent rescue.
Regular marine MF/HF listeners will
be aware that receiving voice radio
transmissions from ships at great
distances away is rare, although not
Remote Distress:
impossible. This is due to the lower power
used by ship radios, compared with the high
transmitter power that coast stations use.
Listeners will also know that propagation
conditions for the MF and HF marine
What to Do
frequencies can change allowing reception
of voice radio transmissions from stations
Robert Connolly Looks at what to do when you
much closer to sea level and over much hear a distress call from another part of the world,
greater distances. remembers the Princess Victoria disaster and reflects
I experienced such a situation when
listening to the US Coastguard rescue on the recent blockage of the Suez Canal.
frequency of 5686kHz one night.
https://www.uscg.mil
I was receiving signals relating to the British Isles, so what would you do? Would If an MRCC receives several calls for
recovery of an injured yachtsman in the you carry on listening and assume that the same tasking, this is not a bad thing;
Atlantic well off the Miami coast. While I some coast station that you were unable at least any casualty may stand a chance
missed the initial transmissions I quickly to hear would respond to the call or would of survival. If, on the other hand, you did
learned that the mission involved a you contact the UK Coastguard and advise nothing, I think that you would feel annoyed
helicopter, along with a fixed-wing aircraft them of the details that you have received? with yourself, especially if you came across
that was providing top cover. I believe it is always best to err on the a subsequent press report that the casualty
The aircraft relayed communications side of caution. In a Mayday situation, there was eventually found deceased due to
from the rescue helicopter to the mission is a high risk that lives may be lost. While nobody responding to their distress call.
control centre. In this case, I was able to the casualty may well be outside the area
hear the helicopter reporting that it had just of responsibility of the UK Coastguard, the The MV Princess Victoria Incident
completed winching the casualty on board latter can very quickly contact the nearest On 31st January 1953, a severe windstorm
and was at 100 feet. Its mission control Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre was sweeping across Europe. On that
centre reported it was unable to hear the (MRCC) to the casualty’s location, for fateful day, the car ferry MV Princess
helicopter, and the top-cover aircraft had them to commence a Search and Rescue Victoria (Fig. 1) departed the port of
to relay. Nevertheless, I could listen to the (SAR) operation. Stranraer on the west coast of Scotland
helicopter on the far side of the Atlantic. https://tinyurl.com/79ksfam9 at 0745 for its regular passage to Larne
If you are a reader living outside the UK in Northern Ireland. It was carrying 128
Halfway Around the Globe a similar procedure of contacting your passengers and 51 crew, despite a Gale
Imagine that you are listening to one of national coastguard will apply. Certainly, Warning being in force. The passage
the MF/HF distress frequencies and you you could search the internet or other from Stranraer begins with transiting
hear a vessel issuing a Mayday call giving sources, to contact the nearest MRCC by Loch Ryan, a sheltered inlet on the west
its position thousands of miles away from e-mail or telephone, but this would take coast of Scotland. The force of the wind
your location, for example, in the South time. With a Mayday call, lives are possibly was not apparent until the ship entered
Atlantic off Brazil. Your location is in the at stake, so every second counts. the open sea to head towards Larne,

Maritime Matters
ROBERT CONNOLLY
Fig. 1: The vessel MV Princess Victoria.

Fig. 2: The harbour in Annalong, Co. Down.
where huge waves caused damage to the

stern doors allowing water to enter the
car deck. The stern doors were severely
damaged, and any attempt to return to
the shelter of the loch failed. The Princess
Victoria was only equipped with wireless
telegraphy equipment.
Two hours after leaving Stranraer, at
09.46, the wireless operator issued a call to
Portpatrick Radio, located just a few miles
south of Loch Ryan: “Hove-to off mouth
of Loch Ryan. Vessel not under command.
Urgent assistance of tugs required”.
The ship was listing to starboard, and
this was increasing with shifting cargo
and seawater pouring into the car deck. At
10:32, an SOS. message was transmitted,
and the order Abandon Ship was
given at 14:00. 2
The Princess Victoria was still reporting
her position as 5 miles north-west The ship’s radio officer remained at his above, responsible amateur monitoring
of Corsewall Point (the entrance to Loch post until the very end. On hearing the final of marine MF/HF frequencies can, on rare
Ryan), but her engines were still turning; wireless call, several merchant vessels occasions, place the listener into a situation
at a speed of 5 knots, they were, in fact, sheltering in Belfast Lough put to sea to where a life may be saved, or additional
gradually drawing the vessel closer to assist. Despite arriving before the lifeboats, information be given to an official enquiry
Northern Ireland, well away from her the merchant ships were unable to rescue after a serious incident.
reported position. the survivors in lifeboats, as the fierce Back in my father’s day, a Board of
Portpatrick and Malin Head Radio waves were in danger of dashing Princess Enquiry would have been set up to
stations made several attempts to Victoria’s lifeboats against the sides of investigate a vessel sinking and would
determine the exact position of the ship the larger ships. be grateful for all available information
through Radio Direction Finding (RDF) All they could do was to provide shelter regarding the incident, professional or
but to no avail. from the worst of the seas until the members of the general public. These
Donaghadee lifeboat arrived and was able days such incidents in the British Isles
Listening In to bring survivors on board. are investigated by a dedicated marine
Meanwhile, back at home, my father, who By the end of the day, there were only investigation team: This was the Marine
had been a former Royal Navy wireless 44 survivors, all men. All the women and Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB, for
telegraphist and was now a primary school children on board perished. the UK) or the Marine Casualty Investigation
teacher, had begun his regular weekend With 133 lives lost, this was the worst Board (MCIB) in the case of Ireland.
morning routine, spending some time loss of civilian life since the end of World https://tinyurl.com/4wf3ry2p
tuning through the short wave bands War II (1939-1945). https://www.mcib.ie
listening to local radio amateurs, ships
and international broadcast stations A Board of Enquiry: Casual Listening in Emergencies
on his McMichael receiver. He had just Personal Connections Although marine VHF offers extensive
received the SOS transmission from the Later in the 1950s, a formal Board of coverage and usage, there is still a small
Princess Victoria and began logging every Enquiry was set up to investigate the possibility of the casual listener playing a
transmission he received concerning this causes of the sinking. The enquiry vital role if a distress call is heard on CH 16
impending disaster. appealed for anyone with any information (156.800 MHz). Some small day craft or
Search and Rescue operations for on the incident to submit it. Therefore, windsurfers will only have a low powered
the ship were hampered by several my father duly sent in his logs of handheld marine transceiver with them to
other rescues that were ongoing off received communications; I believe that raise a distress call if the situation requires.
the northwest coast of Scotland. At one, or possibly two, radio amateurs Therefore, if you hear a distress call on
13:08, the ship broadcast that her who had also monitored the wireless CH16 note the details and listen carefully
engines had stopped. communications did the same. to see if it receives an acknowledgement.
The final Morse code message at 13:58 These would have been used in In most cases, the Coastguard will hear
reported the ship “on her beam end”, 5 miles conjunction with the communication logs the call too. However, given the short range
east of the Copeland Islands, close to the from Portpatrick and Malin Head radio of many handheld marine transceivers,
entrance of Belfast Lough. Two minutes stations and other vessels involved in the it may miss it, especially if it is in a
later the order was given to abandon ship. rescue operation. As you can see from the radio ‘black-spot’.

Maritime Matters
Another vessel might acknowledge your drone to capture air images of coastal Northern Ireland. In the late 18th Century,
receipt of the distress call; but if no rescues. However, you should avoid doing Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821)
acknowledgement is heard then pass this. If a Coastguard rescue helicopter is contemplated the construction of a north-
the information on to the coastguard by tasked to a search and rescue location, it south canal to connect the Mediterranean
telephone. While on this topic, if you happen will be operating at a low level, with the crew with the Red Sea. The plan was abandoned
to see a flare being fired at sea, contact the having a high onboard workload. The last because of the erroneous assumption that
Coastguard immediately, especially if it is a thing they need is to see a drone operating the Red Sea was 8.5 m (28 ft) higher than
red flare or orange smoke. in their task area. As they will have no idea the Mediterranean.
These are distress signals and as such what the drone is going to do, they will have In 1830, General Francis Chesney (1789-
require to be fully investigated by the to abort the task to move to a safe location 1872) submitted his well-known report
Coastguard and lifeboats. for the protection of the aircraft and its to the British government that stated that
crew. In the worst-case scenario, the net there was no difference in elevation, and
Your Staycation Safety result could be the fatality of a casualty, due that a ‘Suez-Canal’ was feasible. However,
While on the subject of distress calls, to the rescue helicopter not being able to the report received no further attention.
we are entering the busy summer period safely operate in its assigned area. Based on Chesney’s measurements
for the coastguard and RNLI. This in 1854 and 1856, Ferdinand de Lesseps
year, ‘staycations’ are likely to be more A Suez Blockage (1805-1894) obtained a concession to
popular than ever, due to Covid-19 travel As I was writing this column in late April create a company to construct a canal open
restrictions, with many more families 2021, the Suez Canal had been featuring to ships of all nations.
heading to our coastal resorts. With this in the news reports, after a large container At the opening of the Suez Canal on 17
in mind, do not block access to the local ship grounded across the canal during November 1869, de Lesseps referred to
lifeboat and coastguard rescue stations – a sandstorm. This incident closed the Chesney as ‘the Father of the Suez Canal’.
delays can cost lives. canal in both directions and causing a General Francis Chesney and his family
There may also be a seasonal increase in large backlog of ships before it could be lived just over a mile away from my child-
people using drones for various purposes, freed, after a week. hood home and had produced his origi-
and it may seem like a good idea to launch The Suez Canal has a historic link with nal plans for the canal there. As and when
cruising returns, some of you will maybe
Channel Freq (MHz) Usage at some point consider taking a cruise that
Suez Canal transits either the Suez or Panama canals.
You may also consider bringing a scanner
Port Said to monitor marine frequencies used dur-
CH 12 156.600 Port Said 1 (outside harbour) ing a cruise (usual precautions apply). To
this end, Table 1 contains the VHF channels
CH 13 156.650 Port Said 2 (inside harbour)
used by both canals.
CH 16 156.800 Port Said Management calling Finally, this month’s second photo (Fig. 2)
is of the small, picturesque harbour located
CH 70 156.525 Port Said DSC
at the foot of the Mourne Mountains in
CH 73 156.675 Port Said Measurement division Annalong, Co. Down, Northern Ireland.
Port Tewfik Until next time “Fair Winds”.
Ch 14 156.700 Port Tewfik
CH 16 156.800 Port Tewfik Management calling Further Reading

• BBC NI:
CH 70 156.525 Port Tewfik DSC
https://tinyurl.com/42p9bet8
CH 74 156.725 Port Tewfik Measurement division • Belfast Telegraph:
Inside Canal
https://tinyurl.com/8bhvn866
• Britain’s Trail of Disaster (YouTube):
CH 8 156.400 Working https://tinyurl.com/48chsjur
CH 10 156.500 Working • Cameron, S. (2002) Death in the North
Channel […]; Colourpoint Books
CH 16 156.800 Calling • De Lesseps, F. (2011) History of the Suez
CH 68 156.425 Working Canal (Cambridge UP; French)
• Karabell, Z. (2003) Parting the Desert: The
CH 70 156.525 DSC
Creation of the Suez Canal (John Murray)
Panama Canal • Loss of the Princess Victoria:
https://tinyurl.com/vz8b48jj
CH 12 156.600 Cristobal and Balboa port traffic
• NI Ferry Site:
CH 13 156.650 Working https://tinyurl.com/28t6uz46
CH 16 156.800 Calling
• S.C.O.T.S.:
https://tinyurl.com/an8s4as6.
Table 1: VHF Frequencies in Use around the Suez and Panama Canals.

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SPECIAL COLLECTOR’S EDITION
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001 front ME.indd 2 21/05/2020 21:13
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 home-
based 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 dive-
bomber 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 THE RAF FIGHTER PILOT THE RAF FIGHTER PILOT
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.
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
The Battle Looms

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
The Battle of Britain was one of the most iconic battles of the Second World War, country, and will assure me that when this Losses Mounted to be called into action, covering the
level has been reached, not one fighter At around the same time, another evacuation from Dunkirk and other
embedding itself indelibly into the nation’s consciousness. Earlier, the Battle of France will be sent across the Channel however momentous decision was undertaken French ports. Inevitably, their losses
could easily have spelled defeat before the air battles got underway in July 1940. insistent the appeals for help may be. by making Lord Beaverbrook Minister of mounted. Meanwhile, the battered and
“I believe that, if an adequate fighter Aircraft Production. Aircraft production depleted RAF units that had been based
A
force is kept in this country, if the fleet had in fact kept pace with fighter losses in France were withdrawn to Britain.
fter the outbreak of war in On 10 May 1940, German forces be made good from squadrons based remains in being, and if the Home Forces incurred during the Battle of France. Here, they were re-equipped where
September 1939, there followed launched their all-out assault on France in Britain. The Commander-in-Chief of are suitably organised to resist invasion, Soon, production would outstrip losses. necessary, and manpower shortages
eight months of what became and the Low Countries and what followed RAF Fighter Command, Air Chief Marshal we should be able to carry on the war Thus, the availability of fighters would made good so far as possible. Meanwhile,
known as the ‘Phoney War’. in Belgium, the Netherlands etc. was the Hugh Dowding, had already stated as single handed for some time, if not not become a limiting factor in the air RAF Fighter Command readied for what
However, it was clear that large-scale complete collapse of those countries early as September 1939, that if he was indefinitely. But, if the Home Defence defence of Britain. was to come. Certainly, the Battle of other pilots concentrated on what haring off suddenly, upwards or Facing page Although posed for a news
fighting would ultimately follow, and a under the overwhelming might of expected to defend Britain’s skies, then Force is drained away in desperate However, by 1 June 1940, the RAF had France was over. The Battle of Britain was was going on in their cockpits: oil downwards, the rest of the squadron cameraman, the squadron telephone
British Expeditionary Force was sent to German military power. Across France, he would need 52 fighter squadrons. attempts to remedy the situation in lost 436 fighter aircraft and almost all about to begin. temperatures and pressures, fuel state, watching in bemusement and puzzled orderly shouts instructions for a ‘scramble’
France before the end of that year. As German forces rolled inexorably onwards At that time, he had only 32 under his France, defeat in France will involve the its light bomber force of Fairey Battles, oxygen contents checked and selected because they received no transmission, as pilots lounge in the dispersal hut. The
part of that BEF, a large Air Component towards the English Channel and while command and was told it would be complete and irremediable defeat of this along with a considerable number of its Immensely Powerful to ‘On’, microphone not on ‘Transmit’ or else just couldn’t understand what had smartly dressed officer is Duty Pilot – the
was supplemented by an Advanced Air the French and British tried desperately impossible to produce the number he country.” were not afraid thatBlenheims.
Bristol they were However, By this time,
either liarsRAF Fighter the starter
Dowding button was the possibility
had mentioned Facing page Pilots of 19 Squadron are (this could effectively block all other been said. Meanwhile, constant juggling pilot rostered for ground admin tasks such
Striking Force. In total, these air forces to stem the advance, so the situation required. However, efforts would be It was a hard-hitting letter, but or foolish. However,
Command a strident
at homejangling pushed afterofa invasion
continued to operate thumbs-up fromas
as early the
the middle ofdelivered
May to their dispersal point at RAF transmissions), straps tight, gun-sight of the throttle setting with the left hand, as recording take-off and landing times
amounted to 25 squadrons, six of which became ever more hopeless. made to provide him with a further eight. Dowding’s words had their effect and of the telephone could mean several
over France as the situation worsened. fitter, who unplugged
1940, but bythethe
starter
end of trolley, Duxford ready for operations early one
that month the ‘On’ and illuminated, straps tight and and judicious adjustment of position etc.
were Hawker Hurricane-equipped During the fighting in France, while the French still asked for more things. Sometimes, to intense
In a matter of sixrelief,
weeks, it Franceensuring it was clear ofhad
possibility the been
aircraft.
turned into what morning during the summer of 1940. canopy firmly shut. A surprising number through the control column and rudder Above It was not unusual for aircraft to
fighter squadrons. The remainder of the Predicted Catastrophe increasing numbers of fighter squadrons fighter squadrons to be sent to France,could send acollapsed
messageentirely.
to ‘StandNow,
Down’ Unable to communicate
it .only remained appeared to be over the roar ofIf Hitler Above
probability. was Their relaxed look perhaps would carry out a little good luck routine pedal inputs, were all necessary just to return damaged after an engagement
RAF force in France comprised largely When the fighting had broken out in were sent across the Channel, urged on such appeals were rejected. However, Other times,forit called
Britishpilots toand
forces, some units the
readiness, Merlin engine,
of the the his
to impose pilot and
will onrigger concealing the tension, these Hurricane
the British people, like feeling for a lucky charm, or even keep station. It was incredibly hard work, and with pilots wounded. This brand-
light bombers and Army Co-Operation earnest on 10 May 1940, aircraft of the by desperate appeals from the French further squadrons of Hurricanes were and then to French
the heart-pounding order:
army, to evacuate exchanged thumbs
via Dunkirk up signals, the rigger
then he could apparently only do so pilots of 501 Squadron pose for the camera crossing themselves. and mentally and physically draining. new Spitfire had just been delivered to
squadrons. Eventually, however, the Air Component were in almost constant Prime Minister, Paul Reynaud. Dowding deployed over France, but they remained‘SCRAMBLE!’ in what was Operation ‘Dynamo’. RAF slapping hisby pilot on thethe
crossing shoulder
EnglishtoChannel andduring the summer of 1940. All of them Now, the workload was high, and still By now, the squadron was ‘on oxygen’, 602 Squadron at RAF Westhampnett
‘Sitzkrieg’ became the ‘Blitzkrieg’. combat, and losses had to continually saw his resources ‘slipping away like based in the UK. Years afterwards, veterans ofatthe
Fighter Command Battle
home convey reassurance
continued dictatingand
his good-luck
terms fromasWestminster.
he sawToaction. Several of them shot down they needed to concentrate on formation masks clamped securely to pilot’s faces when it was hit by cannon shells from a
of Britain told how they hated the sound leapt from the wing. As he jumped, the enemy aircraft and some of them were keeping while permanently keeping as cold began to permeate the cockpits. Messerschmitt 109 in a combat on 18
E OF B R
of a ringing telephone. aircraft was already rolling, and the rigger killed. a wary eye open for the enemy and Now, with all the hard work of take-off, August 1940. The aircraft was written off
6 On the order to scramble, there 7 was dodged out of the way of the tail-plane, quartering the sky in a relentless search. formation flying and getting to altitude, and Flight Lieutenant Dunlop Urie wounded
L
a mad rush by pilots to their allotted buffeted by the slipstream which was what it was they were intercepting. It A moment of relapse could litterally spell came further nervous tension with in his feet.
TT I
aircraft where the fitter and rigger were kicking up dust and grass. Getting out may have been an instruction along the death. The squadron ‘Weaver’, winding realisation that the enemy were near.
ready and waiting: the rigger on the wing of the way, he was hit by a blast of hot lines of: “MITOR Squadron, ANGELS from side to side, kept a rather more wary Then, a tight knot of fear returned as chance of a well-ordered textbook:
006-011 Background to Battle_AS_W ME.indd 6 22/05/2020 12:36 006-011 Background to Battle_AS_W ME.indd 7 ready to help in his pilot, and the fitter exhaust gasses. Now, the aircraft gathered 22/05/2020
18, Vector 12:36
Two-three-zero. Fifty Plus. eye open than the rest, as the squadron the gunsight was checked and the SAFE ‘Number One Attack’. Instead, it was
standing by with the starter plugged in on speed ahead, into wind, bouncing and BUSTER.” Listening in, the other pilots got closer by the second to their quarry. and FIRE ring on the gun button turned, every man for himself, but with ‘wing
the starboard side of the engine. Heaving rocking across the grass airfield. Others could interpret these coded instructions: Brief instructions might crackle through ready, to the FIRE position. Goggles men’ desperately trying to maintain
TA
BA
himself into the cockpit, the pilot went careered along around it, in the organised “41 Squadron to climb to 18,000 ft on a the headphones: ‘Close up Red 2’ or, on pulled down. And then the shout: station and protect their section leader.
through a number of tasks: helmet pulled chaos that was a squadron scramble. heading of 230 degrees. Fifty plus enemy receipt of further instructions from the ‘BANDITS! Ten o’clock, above. Coming Now, the pilots were climbing and
on, oxygen plugged in, radio jack-plug in Getting airborne, the pilots aircraft. Maximum cruising speed.” Fighter Controller: ‘Turning to Port. Go!’ down now! Break, break, break….’ hanging on their props, the sun glaring
its socket, magneto switches ‘on’, Ki-Gas concentrated on keeping station as Meanwhile, pilots fiddled with the and blinding as they turned, all the while
IN
cylinder priming pump given a couple they selected ‘Gear Up’, closing the Mentally and Physically Draining radio tuner, struggling to tune and re- Chatter Of Gunfire listening out and looking out. Now,
of brief strokes and thumb ready on cockpit canopy while listening out Settling into the climb, the pilots tune their wireless sets in a constant Suddenly, to avoid the ‘bounce’ of there were shouts: “Behind you Blue
the starter. Meanwhile, leaning into the for instructions from the CO or flight automatically slid into section order battle to receive and properly understand fighters coming out of the sun, the 3!”, permeated by chattering gunfire.
cockpit, the Fitter helped the pilot with commander who was talking to the and the preferred squadron formation. the messages. Sometimes, a squawk squadron had dispersed in a pre-ordered A cacophony of shouts and static
COM
his parachute harness straps, then his Sector Operations Room and garnering Meanwhile, the CO or flight commander of static drowned out everything, plan. Now, the enemy fighters were made communication unintelligible.
Sutton seat harness. instructions as to heading, altitude and concentrated on setting course as the sometimes resulting in one section among them. This time, there was no One pilot may be drawing a bead on a
19 21
UE
EM
M
016-029 Pilots Day_AS ME.indd 19 22/05/2020 07:46 016-029 Pilots Day_AS ME.indd 21 22/05/2020 07:46
SS
ORA IVE I
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