The wonderful world of listening to the radio
I’ve always two receivers covering the 8 and 12 MHz DSC channels. And sometimes you catch something new… last night Bandar-e-Anzali radio from Iran was received on 12 MHz (12577 kHz).
Funny detail: Anzali is a port on the Caspian Sea, but the message was to acknowledge a DSC test from CHEMROAD QUEEN, a Panamese flagged tanker anchored near the port of Al Jubail in the Persian Gulf. There is no waterway to connect the two.
My previous post was about the reception of Bandar Abbas (e Shahid Rajaei) Radio from Iran which was a new DSC station for me. I didn’t expect an answer on my reception report, but within a day I had a kind reply from the Duty Officer.
It’s not often that I receive a new DSC station outside Europe, but last week I received Bandar – e Shahid Rajaei on 12 MHz. They acknowledged a DSC test from containership MSC Eyra under the flag of Panama.
I always thought this station in Iran was named “Bandar Abbas” radio, and that’s where I sent my reception report to: abbasradio@pmo.ir . Not that I have high hopes on receiving a reply… The new name Shahid Rajaei refers to one of two ports in Bandar Abbas, and that explains the name!
A QSL for MRCC Constanta, Romania, with a DSC message on 16804.5 kHz. Mr. Marius Roibu sent a fully detailed reply on my report to rna@rna.ro . The transmission was directed to the Italian ship “Valle di Granada” near the Brazilian coast on its way from Rio to Gibraltar.
MRCC Constanta was operated by “Radionav” company until 2020 when they went bankrupt. Today the Romanian Naval Authority is responsible.
A QSL MRCC Klaipeda 12577 kHz. I sent a report to them earlier, but didn’t receive a reply. Today I saw that another DX-er was successful, so I dug up my latest reception of this station and tried again… guess what, an hour later a fully detailed eQSL was delivered to my inbox! I sent my report to mrcc@mil.lt
A beautiful paper QSL card from Tallinn Radio 2187.5 kHz from Estonia. I received them with a DSC test message and sent my report to tallinnradio@riks.ee . It was my second attempt in trying to QSL them. The station is operated by Riigi Infokommunikatsiooni Sihtasutus (RIKS). This non-commercial entity provides communication services to public institutions and other state-budgeted institutions.
On my second attempt I received a fully detailed email, with their nice logo, to QSL MRCC Lisboa 2187.5 kHz. I received them acknowledging a DSC test of RoRo ship “Grande Brasile” on its way from Portugal to Senegal. I sent my report to mrcc.lisboa@marinha.pt . Please note that I edited the picture of the QSL email to remove phone numbers etc. for privacy reasons.
A brief email to QSL Port Said Radio on 2187.5 kHz. I received the station in February acknowledging a DSC test message from a tanker Dilos anchored in Port Said Harbour. Initially I tried to reach out to the Port Said Harbour authorities via psp@portsaid.gov.eg , but without success. Rob (IZEROCDM) at DX Fanzine was so kind to share the portsaid.radio@te.eg address that delivered him the QSL. Thank you so much Rob!
This is only my 2nd QSL from Egypt. I don’t know how many reports I sent to Radio Cairo… but they were all to no avail.
The other Egyptian QSL I have is from the Middle East News Agency (MENA). I vividly remember how in 1993 I built a small RTTY decoder using an OpAmp (918?). It ran with software on the first PC I owned, an IBM PS/2 with an 80286 Intel CPU (10 MHz). With only one purpose… to get a QSL from my 181st radio country.
Among the DSC stations Faversham Radio, call sign MNC, is something special. You have the major Coastal Radio Stations and Rescue Coordination Centres (JRCC or MRCC) and then there are a few maritime colleges and training institutes like MarTec in Skagen, NuTec in Bergen and Trondheim, and the Constanta Maritime University. Faversham Radio in Kent, United Kingdom is also a training facility but operated by volunteers. It is situated in Faversham along the Swale, a tidal channel in the Thames estuary.
Roger Taylor was so kind to confirm my reception of Faversham Radio. After serving as a radio officer at sea and then teaching Decca radar systems all over the world, he joined the Merchant Navy College at Greenhithe in Kent. After a stint at the National Sea School in Gravesend he and a few colleagues decided to become independent and start Snargate Radio as a training facility for GMDSS. They gave it call sign MNC, referring to the old college at Greenhithe. But also the first coastal radio station in the UK using an M (as in the old days of the Marconi Stations) rather than G in their call sign.
Later MNC was relocated to Faversham, and the name was changed accordingly. The station is entirely voluntary run by ex seafarers. The transmitter is a Sailor 5000 SSB kit because, as Roger explains, this is the only kit that allowed them to program an MMSI number starting with “00” indicating that it is a coastal radiostation. This is indeed something that is odd with stations like MarTec, NuTec, CMU or ANFR Donges: their MMSI is like that of a ship.
Faversham Radio is allowed to acknowledge DSC test calls. Making it the only HF maritime provision in the United Kingdom. In the beginning (2013-2015) the station was heavily used. But then a drop in requests was noted. Apparently due to the fact that the UK MCA had asked the entry in the ALRS (Admiralty List of Radio Signals) to be deleted. This has no been decided otherwise, but the use of Faversham Radio is still very low. Making it a rare catch.
Recently I received Bangkok Radio on 2187.5 kHz. With 9225 kilometer this is by far my most distant maritime reception on MF. Unfortunately I couldn’t find an email address, until Néstor Damián Fischetto provided me with one. Within a few days I received a fully detailed email from YvesZor, radio operator at the station:
Dear Peter Reuderink,
Thank you for your email and for sharing your reception report of Bangkok Radio. We are delighted to hear that you were able to receive our station on 2 MHz, especially considering the distance of over 9225 kilometres. It’s always gratifying to know that our signals are reaching listeners around the world.
We confirm your reception of Bangkok Radio on 2187.5 kHz on February 27th, 2024, at 20:28 h UTC. Your dedication to the hobby of radio reception for over four decades is admirable, and we are honoured to be a part of your listening experience.
Should you have any further questions or if there’s anything else we can assist you with, please feel free to reach out to us.
Thank you once again for reaching out to Bangkok Radio. We value your support and interest in our broadcasts.
Warm regards,
YvesZor [YZ]
Radio Operator
Bangkok Radio
Big thanks to Nestor (and Rob IZ0CDM, who provided similar address info a few days later)!
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