The WORLD on SHORTWAVE

Radio Record, 26 June 1936, Page 49

The WORLD on SHORTWAVE

Conducted Jy the

N.Z. Shortwave Club

Shortwave Club N otes From the Secretar y’ Ss Pen

(By

A. B.

McDonagh

4 Queen Street,

Wellington, E.1.) MAN new hands to shortwave are mystified by hearing strong ¢arrier waves with regular clock. tickings or -a_ single note repeated, more strongly in evidence be- / tween 10 and 11 megacyeles, or, roughly, between VK8LR and JVM, Japan. These are telephony stations, and the ecarrier may be on the air for a yery long time, or perhaps at the stroke of each hour a few words may be spoken rapidly. Quite a number of members ‘have written in to say that they picked up 9MI, the Australian motor-ship Kanimbla, but the frequency used was 49 metres and not 25. "‘All-waver," Marton, is first with a "new one." Some time ago I mentioned the possibility of an Italian station in the occupied territory. The word "Pronto" is used by Italian stations similar 16 the German "Achtung" (attention). So we deduce a new 25-metre telephony station at Addis Ababa which replaces the former Abyssinian HTB. : "Cocky" from the Bay of Islands: repoyts RNE on 25 metres (12 m.c.) as very consistent, though sometimes distorted. He recently heard 2RO accusing English munition firms © of supplying Ethiopia with poison gas. In his locality he has excellent speaker reception with a_six-valve battery receiver and places RNE and W2XAP as his best. .

For some weeks past VK3LR has been broadcasting on Sunday nights from about 7.30 p.m, for outback Australians localities prevent their receiving broadcast stations.. They. were heterodyning 2MH, and I wrote away mentioning this, so frequency is slightly ‘changed. VK3MUE still has his Wednesday night mail-bag session at about 10 pm, N.Z.S.T. , F.J.M., Hamilton, reports 9MI as on approximately 6.02 m.e. and thinks the reason why the 20-metre band is not so congested now is because so ‘many ‘Americans and Australians are going down to 10 metres. Mr, Dent, Wellington, in a comprehetisive report, says that LRU announce their wave ag 31.06 metres or 9660 k.c. {(As.a number of readers are evidently confused with the terms as given in wavelength or frequency, I might meution 9660 k.c. would, by inserting a point, read as 9.660, or for short 9.66 megacycles.) Radio ‘Cartagena have a fuint four-note signal and are on 81.25 metres (9600 k.c.). He inquires re a bugle call interval signal on 9.41. TI-4-NRH, Costa Rica, used this signal, but I have not heard whether he has returned "home" again. Of interest to Syrian people is q ruwour that stations in the U.S.A. are subseribing for the erection of a short-wave station at Homs, near Bayreuth A shortwave station was also mentioned for Tel-e-vivy, an important Jewish town iv Palestine, but recent events would postpone negotiations. Many people tune only at night-time and are disappointed with poor results. At the present time night reception is nothing remarkable except on the 31metre band, where the Australians hold forth. With the exception of the Russion railway telephone station on the 25metre band just above RNH, it is seldom we hear their many telephony stations now. As for the 19-metre band, it is a complete blank until after midnight. These conditions will*change again and when Daventry’s schedule commences later in the evening it will be noticel that France and Germany will begin to reappear. About 11 o'clock one night during the week I heard an American. police station on 3 mec,, but static. was very severe. The U.S. A. police have a number of stations, but of course will not verify. They do not use.a.call, so if one is heard that position should be watched. One might

suddenly hear, "Car No. so-and-so, proceed *to- 345 ‘West Fourth Stréet." . Aircraft stations are rare I have heard weather ‘reports. and laniling directions, but though’ conditions were good the inevitable static did not make listening easy. : r It is noticed that some of the old-time Zl: amateurs are on the air again. ZL2BE, 3DC, 2AX and others, together with ZLIBC, have consistently assisted those whose ambition was to get on the air, The most special mention in this direction is ZL2ZAX, Mr. James. Kyle, who in addition to looking after his own: broadcast station found time. to post . countless copies of examination papers and information out to many people, including members ofthe N.Z.S.W.C., who are now on the air themselves, It‘is a regrettable feature that some have seen fit to’ neglect supporting. the societies .whose members have assisted them and who are continuing-to work without remuneration on their behalf. The.work of the amateur transmitters in pioneering shortwave should not be weakened by lack of support and it would be a sorry state of affairs if- the. N.Z. A.R.T. and its associated societies in other parts of the world had the very narrow bands allotted to their activities still further curtailed. Just recently we have noticed commercial stations encroaching on the 20-metre band, just a sort of "peaceful penetration," and as a percentage of the listeners of to-day may be the transmitters of to-morrow, the present transmitting bands should be preserved for the coming generation,