Shortwave Blog "Bytes"

All times UTC

Clandestine activity
6135, Shiokaze/Sea Breeze, via Yamata, 1421-1429.* A tearful story in Japanese, usual piano background music, (ex 5910). Had first tuned in to 5910 to hear a massive jamming noise there, but no Shiokaze, so I scanned the 49m band and found them up here. Believe it is the first time they have used this frequency; fair to good reception; in the clear and too soon for the North Korea jamming to have found them. (Ron Howard, CA/DX Window 401)

11500, Radio Dabanga, via Talata-Volonondry, prior to 1700. Broadcasting to Sudan. Arabic songs through top-of-the-hour, then man singing repeated IDs “Radio Dabanga, Radio Dabanga, Radio Dabanga”. Possible news followed in Sudanese with brief ann interspersed with even briefer music. Fair. (Harold Sellers, Canada/DX Window 401)

15410, Radio Y’Abaganda, via Issoudun, France. Ugandan clandestine, 1709. Repeating no service telephone announcement, tones and “we are sorry, you have reached...”, pause and then programming kicked in with two men in Swahili. This broadcast is on the air Saturday only, 1700-1800. Poor signal. (Harold Sellers, Canada/DX Window 401)

Clandestine, Voice of Tibet (VOT) radio service slammed the Chinese authorities on Thursday for jamming condolence messages from exiled Tibetans over the deadly earthquake in northwest China. The Oslo-based VOT said it had been including messages of support, solidarity and grief since Monday with its shortwave transmissions -- which are regularly jammed -- in both Tibetan and Mandarin.

After all broadcasts were blocked for two days, VOT decided to isolate the condolences from its regular Tibetan news and current affairs and send them in a separate daily transmission. "We informed the Chinese authorities of this and asked them to allow the transmissions, but again on Wednesday these special broadcasts were jammed," said VOT's editor-in-chief Karmna Yeshi, based in Dharamshala, the seat of the Tibetan government-in-exile in northern India. "All we wanted was to give a platform for Tibetans and other sympathisers to convey their messages to the victims of the earthquake, rescue workers and aid agencies," Yeshi said. "Unfortunately, our appeal to allow this on humanitarian grounds was ignored by the Chinese," he added.

Last week's 6.9-magnitude quake, which killed nearly 2,200 people, hit a remote region of the Tibetan plateau in northwestern China. The Dalai Lama, Tibet's exiled spiritual leader, had appealed to the government in Beijing to let him into China for the first time in 51 years to visit the quake zone in the region of Qinghai, where he was born. So far, Beijing has declined to respond directly to the request.

The condolences transmitted by VOT included messages from the Dalai Lama, other senior lamas, Tibet support groups and individual Tibetan exiles. VOT's director in Oslo, Oystein Alme, said the Chinese jamming was a "grave violation" of basic human rights. "There are on and off buttons also on Chinese radios. Why are the Chinese authorities so afraid they can not even allow the Tibetans to hear condolence messages from the outside world?" Alme said in a statement. VOT has been airing daily programmes in both Tibetan and Chinese on short wave to Tibet and China as well as India, Bhutan and Nepal since 1996. (Hindustan Times via Slaen, May 01/DX Window 401)

Germany cutbacks again
6085 co-channel. Rumours these days, Bayerischer Rundfunk Munich Ismaning will cease shortwave transmission 6085 kHz in DRM for ever, due of budget cuts. (BCDX 963/Top News)

Guam
12105. One of the KSDA Guam transmitters is bad in audio since few weeks now. Buzzy audio noted again from KSDA Guam in Chinese service at 1105 UT May 8th, S=3 weak. But at same time KSDA Indonesian and Sudanese progr is correct in audio on 15540 kHz in 11-12 UT slot.(wb, wwdxc BC-DX TopNews May 8)

Frequency change of KTWR Agat in Korean from May 2:
1400-1500 new freq 11750 TWR 100 kW 335 deg, ex15425
(R BULGARIA DX MIX News, Ivo Ivanov, via wwdxc BC-DX TopNews May 1)
(BCDX 963/Top News)

HCJB transmitter news
Web-blog of Dan Anderson mentions another transmitter will be installed by HCJB engineers as a gift for Radio Centrafrique at Bangui-Bimbo site. Frequency not yet announced but probably 5035 kHz. The website also has photos of antenna installation at both sites. Please note that these two transmitters are low power, rated only as 1kW. (Jari Savolainen-FIN, DXplorer May 8) (BCDX 963/Top News)

Indonesian monitoring
3995, RRI Kendari, 1251-1300, Apr 27, dialogue in Bahasa Indonesia, ann and songs, 1300 Song of the Coconut Islands interval signal, followed by news. Poor signal quality (Sellers). Also heard at 1450-1515. Bahasa Indonesian talk about internet, Indonesian music, interval signals at 1459'37, then news from Jakarta with some reports by phone (not //3325 at the same time) - poor with local noise and splashes from China National Radio 3990, 35443. (Beryozkin, and Timofeyev in Dxplorer/DX Window 401)

9526, Voice of Indonesia, Cimanggis, 1240-1352. Bahasa Indonesian talks. English announcements and Indonesian vocals, 1338 “Let us Speak Bahasa Indonesia”, “a program to guide you to speak Bahasa Indonesia.” SINPO 54544. (Beryozkin and Sellers/DX Window 401)

9680, RRI Jakarta, 1002-1050. Local type music. It sounded like a novelty tune in Indonesian, with laughing and humor, phone-in. Signal was very good this morning. (Chuck Bolland, FL/DX WIndow 401)

Morocco back on frequency
RTM via Nador-MRC site missed these days, but is back on 15341 kHz 09-14 UT May 8th.(wb, wwdxc BC-DX TopNews May 8)(BCDX 963/Top News)

New DRM website
DRM Consortium has launched an upgraded new website with better features and special members' area for more interactivity, have a look at: www.drm.org (Alokesh Gupta, India/DX Window 401)

Russian monitoring
5930, Radio Rossii, 1020-1030. Male/female in conversation until 1024. Nice to hear Radio Rossii still audible via Petropavlovs, at this time. Music began at 1025. Checked 5940 and heard a parallel signal there with music and talk. Both signals were poor this morning (5/13)(Chuck Bolland, FL)

15340, Voice of Russia (Serpukhov), 1643-1656. Russian. Piano music followed by talk by woman announcer. Slow pop music at 1659. Conversation from male/female announcers at 1652. Very poor signal with fading, barely above noise level. (Jim Evans, TN)

5940, Radio Rossii, Arman, 0950-1015. Russian comments, fair // 5930, 7200, 7230 and 7320(Bolland, Howard/DX Window 401)

7140, Radio Rossii, Yakutsk, 2104-2111. Russian news of Radio Rossii and weather report, 2109 medical advertising, fair with amateur radio interference, noted on // 7200 and 7230 both with strong signals. SINPO 23442. (Beryozkin and Timofeyev/DX Window 401)

7200, Radio Rossii, Yakutsk, 2105-2111. Russian, news of Radio Rossii until 2110, ads from 2110. Interference from Radio France Internaitonale on 7205. SINPO 34433. (Beryozkin/DX Window 401)

7230, Radio Rossii, Yakutsk, 2105-2111. Russian news of Radio Rossii until 2110, advs from 2110, sideband splashes from China Radio International on 7225 and 7235. SINPO 32442. (Beryozkin/DX Window 401)

9690, Radio Tatarstan, *0610-0700.* Open carrier from 0600, 0610 start of program with interval signal, station ID and bulletin of news seemingly in Russian, very strong signal. Was hoping for Voice of Nigeria (active on 15120 this morning)(Kuhl/DX Window 401)

South Korea
6015, KBS Hanminjok Bangsong 1 (presumed), via Hwasong, 1217-1224. I have noted a number of times recently, that the heavy jamming has been absent here. Heard well above a light jamming noise with Korean program till 1224 when heavy jamming covered them. Also noted at 1442-1451, Apr 11, with only light jamming till the heavy jamming intermittently started at 1451 (Ron Howard, CA/DX Window 401)