500 kHz in Europe, the Summer of 1974
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- Опубликовано: 13 сен 2024
- Sorry for the tacky powerpoint slides but thought it was worth getting this remarkable audio document up on RUclips.
These are recordings made by Arthur Goodnow, W1DM (SK), of 500 kHz in the Summer of 1974. It is incredible to realise just how recently 500 kHz was a major artery of international maritime communication and morse code the lifeblood that pumped through it. When I was first studying to become a radio ham in 1991, the frequency was silent but there was still some HF CW left. Now all gone: "Appelait tous. C'est notre dernier cri avant notre silence éternel."
Was an R/O in the 70s/80s.. Had a dream last night.. on a ship, ropes being removed for Atlantic crossing, was delighted going to be using morse one last time.. lovely feeling.. I really had this dream.. woke before we sailed.. thanks for memories..
500 khz was a great frq to listen by pleasure .Most of the R/O says if they don't listen 500 khz due to any reason
they feel themselves
alone and broken at sea.
Therefore ,Same time it was a very warm and affectionated channel all the problems were solving here.
Wonderful! I was an R/O from 76 to 86 and enjoyed the wonderful life a young man then enjoyed in the Merchant Many. it's all a lifetime ago, but this recording brought it all back! A sincere thanks to Gerry lynch for this memory evoking recording. And I can still read it all - amazing really that we never forget morse!
he he he, me too Keith started in the greek navy in 1975, the best time for the shipping industry
Arthur Goodnow was my grandfather. I have fond memories of visiting him at his house in Connecticut, and touring his basement. Every Saturday morning he disappeared into its depths to communicate with people all over the world. Thanks for preserving this, it was great to hear his voice. Mary McNaughton-Cassill
And thank you for sharing that with me, Mary. I am touched that you have done so. Go well.
I worked at GKA Portishead radio station 1975/1976 which was when the amount of CW traffic reached its peak. Although the station did not handle the MF frequencies (500khz etc) every band was covered from 4Mhz to 22Mhz. There were dozens of R/O's sitting in front of a typewriter and a multiband receiver. The messages were typed straight onto the form inserted before each QSO was started. The completed msg was then popped onto a belt which ended up at the sorters desk for onforwarding, usually by telex. I was often asked how come the operator already had traffic on hand when the ship being worked was sent up to a working frequency. When the ships R/O first makes contact with the listening/scanning operator, the callsign is noted and any traffic on hand for that ship is delivered to the operator who has been designated to work that ship. Things became chaotic immediately after the traffic list was sent. On even hours for UK ships and odd hours for all other flags. Not a little skill was required to be an R/O at GKA, one the ability to touchtype (not the 2 finger method) plus the ability to receive morse at minimum 28wpm and being able to tolerate every type of fist from the abysmal to the superfast senders like the Russians cruise liners who were in business then. The receiving antennas were right outside the main building in the form of directional rhombics laid out in a semicircle and wired so that the operator could flick through a rotating switch at his desk.
Happily I'm still key bashing on the ham bands. Its like tying a shoelace, once learned you never forget.
Ahh, QRY 23. Iremember it well.😁
Really good to hear the cacophony of calling on 500. Somehow I always seemed able to pick out what I was wanting to hear...must have been the good teaching of Mr.MacDonald (Old Mac) and Mr.Mathewson at Glasgow College of Nautical Studies. I was at sea 1974 first ship Tekoa, till 1994 as Radio Officer,after which I became ET Officer. Finally finished at sea in 2017.
Most of my career as R/O was with P & O, short period with Helge Myre, Bibby, N.Sea oil rig,
P & O Ferries Dover, finally Swords as R/O then ET. Loved being an R/O. Ah, they WERE good old days! 73's to all ex-R/O'S ....VA.. .. . .
Hi Neil - remember you well from GCNS! If you are on Facebook there are a couple of R/O specific groups which are very active and currently producing tons of R/O nostalgia :-) "Maritime Radio Group" and "Radio-Officers"
@@langsider Afternoon Donald, good to know you are still with us! Was R/O till 1996 went ETO until 2017, when was forced to retire.Must get onto Fbook, see who's still around. 73's...
@@neilharrison7555 Not quite as many around from our generation as you might imagine. I think a lot of them shunned anything electronic with the passing of the thermionic valve :-)
Joined first ship as 2nd RO in April 1958, a month before my 17th birthday. The recordings are exactly what 5 ton sounded like in those days. Loved the job, was actually drawn to the job partly by the bravery of David Broadfoot. I lived not too far from the terminal in Scotland.
Bob
Interesting.I never thought it would disappear.Thanks.
It is very nostalgic I had working 27 years as radioofficer
Nice to hear FFM on the air again. Thanks for the memories
WOW, I found this searching for information on Arthur Goodnow (W1DM when I knew him) He and his wife Fran baby sat me when I was a kid. I remember his basement of fantastic equipment, one being a cherished but long silent spark transmitter. I believe I actually recall the modified transistor radio that he used to receive these transmissions. Thank you for posting this, a great tribute to a wonderful silent key.
So glad I brought back happy memories of a friend.
I am a retired radio officer.I served on shipd between 1969 to 2000 . I contacted by all the stations here on 500 khz including Mediterranean sea area
İt is a being very nice suprise for me to hear all the stations again once more after long years 😃DE TCXL TKS +
Thanks for the nice recording. Good memories of good old 500 kHz !
I was ro from 79 to 93 . Best Life
Que gratis recuerdos. Fui operador en LPD/LPL en Baires del 80 al 99. El mejor trabajo de mí vida. Actualmente LW3DKE. Gracias y saludos cordiales.
Was an R/O for 23 years, started in the 60's. Thanks, it brought it all back to me. I've been QRT for many a year 😢
I was an RO from 1970 to 1986. I always remember my first trip as a junior RO coming out of London and headed down the channel, the sheer intensity of the signals seemed pretty overwhelming after clean college and PMG morse experiences. Strange how you got to read through it all after a while.
+Bob Clay Yeah it took along (average) to pass throught that weirdest experience?
Sounds like there were still some ICW transmitters, just one generation newere than spark transmitters... And lots of chirp - now i don't feel ashamed anymore for my chirpy WS19 :)
Me too 91-96. Best job I ever had. Videos like this give me the sentimental shivers. No sign of it dying on the ham bands quite yet. I'd give it a few more decades.
I am currently mostly active in a pretty hardcore VHF/UHF multi-op contest station: I am tolerated despite the fact I can barely solder a coax plug because I am "the CW man". A lot of our real DX is still worked on CW. It's still the best mode for aircraft scatter, really important in European UHF contesting, better than SSB for marginal signals and quicker and more open to human common sense than the digimodes (was that IO86 or IO96? Computer says no copy, human being knows instinctively and that IO96 is all in the North Sea). Also, quicker to complete than digi for the really marginal tropo skeds. 860km on 1296 to the far South East of France with the Massif Central in the way? CW makes it possible!
Contesters know CW wins VHF/UHF contests!
Same as you Gerry. I was an RO on oil rig in the days after CW sadly. But I’m ex-Royal Signals and was taught CW up to 50wpm copying onto keyboard/VDU to listen to the Russians. Like you I usually turn up at my contest teams location and just get put straight into the CW seat and work the initial pile up. Always fun and a privilege amongst so many old timers on my team.
Thank you for sharing this. This is a great snapshot of history. 73 de NW7US
Me trajo bonitos recuerdos cuando fui radio Operador en la Armada de Chile y navegando siempre en escucha los 500 kHz QAP AR
I remember working a sked with the sailing ship Esmeralda. It was a rare event in those days. (Late 1960s?)
I was on a WT ship in the 90's! So it was around till quite recently....miss being sparks best job on the boat! No matter how drunk you were they always had to find you so they could leave!
I have to say that I do not recall this general chirpiness. By 1974 most kit was crystal controlled, and indeed, at the end, we hear a recording from 1972 where there is no chirpiness. There was the odd wandering transmitter, but it was rare. I think it must derive from W1DM's hack to retune his tranny, and is generated by instability in the BFO he inserted.
Maybe the stronger signals pulled the osc?
chirping at its best!!
I learned CW over the winter of 1991-92, aged 14. In those days the shore stations were still sending CQs all over the maritime bands although there was very little real traffic, and I suppose the final end was by that stage inevitable, although lamentable and still lamented by me. There were some really big signals about - Niton, Portishead and Scheveningen huge on backscatter even when they were in the skip zone from Belfast and a big Chinese coastal station - XSU perhaps? - a huge signal on 12 MHz well after sunset. Happy days.
at 6.32 indeed a XXX CQ de OXZ.
My grandfather in law heard a lot of Morse in the spark era, 500 kHz 600 m and commercial traffic on 150 m… he was a friend of the Marconi man in the ship were he worked in engine room…
Gratos recuerdos
Tks fer this posting. Vy nostalgic. I wonder if these chirpy EA stations ever did get their txmrs stable. 73 de Kingcw.
wow oxz !
i would give everything i own to be a real r/o again on a banana boat for a couple of years
I spent a lot of time as R/O with Salen on the banana boats and know what you mean.. wonderfull times roll on Clampy, John Bell, Derek Robinson, John Adams and Captain Joan both deceased,.. what a life..
@@hughsegrave3979 Hi Hugh. I also did time (2 trips) on the Snow Hill back in the 80's - 2 trips. they were really great ships a minute of my time there. I was with Derek Robinson when we ran aground coming out of Cortes I think. He was a great Captain and a good friend to all on board.
Thanks for reply Kieth, believe it or not was on the South View ex Snow boat, remember the riding gang Alan Lancaster, and Tony Close or Stevie Watkins, remember DeAlamo what we called Cortes? I hope my memory never fades.. too many good ones my friend.
@@hughsegrave3979 Wow! I was on the Snow Hill for 2 trips! I remember those names, though not the faces. They were really beautiful ships and I remember Cortes and the Chinese restaurant there! Some of my best days in life on those ships and in those places. Stay well mate - really good touching base who understands those times.
ohm myyyy goodnes , listen to the chirps , spurious emmissions and off freq calling. but the other sigs are lovely. thanks for this lovely historical record of sounds now long gone .
PCH Scheveningen coming in at 3.19... remember this still being a beacon in the early 90s when I was learning Morse.
I recognized PCH by its sound in 2 seconds Gerry ;-) vy 73 Albert ex r/o pa5abw
As a radio amateur I did a special event on the loss of the Princess Victoria... Amateur radio operators will know what a special event is..
RIP David Broadfoot A Hero
+Wiltshire Man And a Wiltshire Man who knows who he was! We should meet up for a pint some time.
+Gerry Lynch Where are you based Gerry? I am in Swindon. Licensed radio ham call G0VQW exclusively CW. Member of FOC, fists, and The German HSC club, so I know a little about the heroic efforts of old maritime RO's
Sandy
+Wiltshire Man I am based in Salisbury (originally from Belfast) - callsign G0RTN/GI0RTN. Mostly CW although I do some SSB as well!
It's so weird to hear CW without the " ..... _. _. " I do hear a lot of CQ's though.
Música celestial!
The music of the spheres! Without CW, it's just CB. #LoveCW
Isn't that a faint XXX at 6.23 mins then drowned out by a TTT?
Yes Mike, xxx de oxz
IAR 516up ❤
Cq from VON at 12:07
Hi Bob, how you doing?
Plenty QSD