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Clandestine Communiqué Commando Solo Back In Action! by Gerry L. Dexter |
Rich D’Angelo got this neat QSL for the Commando Solo broadcasts during the U.S.-Taliban conflict in Afghanistan. |
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At this writing the giant U.S. military EC-130 aircraft are in the skies over Iraq dropping propaganda leaflets. Whether the associated Information Radio broadcasts are coming directly from the plane or from some ground location or a bit of each, as was the case with Afghanistan, remains unclear. The Information Radio broadcasts are on the air from 1500 to 2000 on 756 and 693 mediumwave, 100.4 FM and 9715 and 11292 shortwave. North American reception of the high frequency transmissions has been weak and spotty in the East and nil at my Midwest location. More and more political opposition groups are discovering how relatively easy and inexpensive it is to get their message out via shortwave radio. One fairly new such effort, mentioned briefly last time, is the United Lao Movement for Democracy, now airing Hmong Lao Radio, based in St. Paul, Minnesota, and aired via transmitters in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on 12070 Fridays from 0100 to 0200. You can contact ULMD through P.O. Box 2426, St. Paul, MN 55106. New Star News, And Another Taiwan-Based Station The endlessly fascinating New Star Broadcasting Station, believed to be beaming music and coded numbers from Taiwan to Mainland China is now using these frequencies: 8300 (designated as “channel 4”), 9725 (designated as channel 3), 11430 (channel 1) 13750 (channel 5) and 15388 (channel 2). As we’ve noted before, North American listeners can hear this one from time to time, although there is no specific schedule. The station is on for 15-20 minutes each hour and is heard during our morning hours. Another Taiwan-based clandestine beamed at the mainland is the Voice of China with Chinese language broadcasts from 2230 – 2330 on 7270 and 0800 – 0900 on 11940. Clandestine Target: Saudi Arabia For the first time in my memory Saudi Arabia has become a clandestine radio target. Sawt al-Islah, or Voice of Reform, is operating on 7590 and/or 9930 from 1900 to 2000, including some English. That hour-long schedule is rather loosely followed, as the station has been heard as early as 1845 and as late as 2130. The broadcasts suffer from some jamming and are believed to be via the Kvitsoy, Norway, site used for Norwegian domestic radio relays, Radio Denmark, and Democratic Voice of Burma (and likely more to come). The address for this one is MIRA, B.M. Box: MIRA, London WC1N 3XX, England. |
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