Sure, with the advent of GMDSS under the new Safety of Life at Sea (SOLAS) treaties, commercial CW (A1A) transmissions are now rare, but they are still out there. Good practice and often fun stuff.
Uruguay broadcasts regular CW traffic lists (messages awaiting ships to call in for them), weather bulletins and warnings usually near or on the hour at: 4346, 8602, 12750, 17230 kHz This is a real commercial CW station, not a "museum" station operated for nostalgia. Of course they work in Spanish. Clearly they are serving ships in the South American waters. For anyone who has MF capability (below what the Elecraft rigs cover) you might hear them using A1A or A2A (CW or MCW) on 421.5 kHz. Speaking of the growing number of "museum" Stations, for those interested in hearing what "old tyme" Commercial CW work sounded like the Radiomarine organization in California and others around North America will be participating in the annual "Night of Nights" activity commemorating the tenth anniversary of the end of most commercial CW work. The activity commences at 0001Z 13 July (5 p.m. 12 July Pacific Time). The following stations in North America are expected on the following frequencies around the MF, HF (shortwave) and even on the Ham bands under the Amateur License K6KPH: 426 KPH KSM 488 KLB 500 KPH KSM KLB 2055.5 WLO 2063.0 *KLB 3550.0 K6KPH 4247.0 KPH 4343.0 WLO 6474.0 KSM 6477.5 KPH 7050.0 K6KPH 8582.5 *KLB 8642.0 KPH 8658.0 WLO 12695.5 KFS 12808.5 KPH 12992.0 WLO 12993.0 KSM 14050.0 K6KPH 16968.5 WLO 17016.8 KPH 17026.0 KFS (after 0430Z) 22477.5 KPH *tentative Everyone is invited to call K6KPH on the Amateur frequencies listed and exchange comments. K6KPH will be operated by commercial CW ops using standard commercial practices which you may find different from what some are used to on the Ham bands these days, but don't let that deter you. They are doing that to demonstrate what smooth, clean CW as practiced by commercial stations sounds like and will definitely accommodate Hams (and follow the most "rusty" fists - commercial ops are expert at reading fists few Hams could understand!) So don't be shy if you get a "QSA 4" instead of an RST report. (QSA 1-5 is readability from lousy at 1 to perfect at 5) On the non-Amateur frequencies you'll hear news bulletins, CQ wheels (where the station sends traffic lists for ships and invites calls) and, now and again over the years, you might hear a real QSO with a ship who calls in. KPH and KSM are on the California coast at Bolinas and Point Reyes, just north of San Francisco. WLO and KLB are at Mobile, Alabama QSL information and more details are available under Night of Nights X at http://www.radiomarine.org It has been ten years since "Sparky" hung up his phones for the last time and "threw the big switch" in shore stations on land and in the radio rooms of thousands of ships on the high seas, but it'll be a much, much longer time before he's forgotten. Ron AC7AC ______________________________________________________________ Elecraft mailing list Home: http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/elecraft Help: http://mailman.qth.net/mmfaq.htm Post: mailto:[email protected] This list hosted by: http://www.qsl.net Please help support this email list: http://www.qsl.net/donate.html
