Topics

91

Equipment / V/UHF antennas other than Disconeys

« on: June 21, 2019, 1802 UTC »

Are there other passive broadband V/UHF antennas than the lowly Discone? I've often used HAM multiband vertical antennas such as those made by Comet, Diamond, and so on for scanning, but they show pronounced peaks only at the HAM bands and only by coincidence is there low swr elsewhere in the spectrum. Staying away from active antennae for now.

Any input appreciated.

92

Equipment / Project 7000

« on: June 20, 2019, 2332 UTC »

I've been wanting one of these bad boys for ages.
 25 to 2000mHz in all modes, decent scanning, was a workhorse for int agencies and military all over the world for some time, nothing did what this thing could for the dollar when it was in production. Some still consider it better than a lot of the current stand alone v/uhf rx available today. The NSA bought these and its brother the R71 by the pallet, as did a lot of the rest of the three letter gangs. If you have each of these, you have NSA twins. One of the east coast radio vendors who sold those same pallets of R71/R7000 to our fed overlords even offered a upconverter mod option to enable the R7000 to cover vlf to 2GHz. I read somewhere the dynamic range wasn't very good on hf with these mods.

https://www.universal-radio.com/catalog/scanners/r7000.html

I've been keeping an eye on one a friend has had for decades, and after decades of use it has the dread iCom display failure as noted by so many R71 owners where the bypass caps in the display circuit dry out and the display goes along with it. This is a non trivial repair so I wasn't looking forward to doing it on my friends rig after purchase. He wants a bit more for it than I want to spend right now but I'm certain I'll end up with it eventually as it's still a good deal.


So the other day I saw an ad at qth for an Icom IC-R7000. It showed illuminated display such as vfo and mode in the included pic, but no rx was listed as the issue. It looked like new in the pic. Seller wanted $75 for it, shipping to be discussed.

I don't really have the money to spare, and considering how long I've been eyeing my friends R7000 that I know for certain works but needs display caps replaced this was a risky deal in numerous ways compared to my friends, but I emailed him to ask what the symptoms were and for shipping to my locale.

He replied that he had checked the internal battery and it was good, and that "it worked a week or two ago and now no rx". He had spent something around $32 to ship a similar item close to me recently and he offered it to me for $100 shipped to my door.

Impulse took over and I sent the money. He also said I was 1st of 3 HAMs who were on the waiting list if a deal failed. I figure looking as good as it did, I might be able to flip it for a tidy sum if repair was out of my league and/or pocketbook.

So some days go by and he informs me he sent it double boxed via USPS, who said it'd be here this Friday, it was here by 0857 local time this am (Thurs) as he paid for 3 day delivery.

Had some car repair work to distract me from the all important radio unboxing/postmortem and finally got around to opening the boxes.

Indeed it looks like new, no cig or smoke smell, all controls operated smoothly, no dings or scratches. Got an ac cord, plugged the ac cord into the wall and into the radio and held my breath as I pressed the power switch.

Everything lighted up as expected, modes changed, could hear the mixer relay switch for 1gHz operation, vfo worked fine, and noted the smeter level changed slightly as I went from mode to mode. Display is bright like when an iCom has good display caps, and dimmer switch works. Squelch worked too per rx signal indicator light.

I don't recall if the remote control internal option is required for that indicator to light, but it does when the remote switch is pressed. Turned squelch full counterclockwise and audio full clockwise, not a peep from the internal speaker. Then I turned the audio way down for the next test as everything so far indicated control panel if not rf life of at least a minimal sort.

Plugged in a set of phones fully preparing myself for there to be nothing, turned up the volume, and the glorious rush of an audio amp ensued! Elation and despair as I got a very nice R7000 by way of theft as it were; for whatever reason, the internal speaker isn't functioning at all and that seems to be its only malfunction noted so far.

So, have to open the case and see why the internal speaker isn't firing, I never use internal speakers save for testing but they're very important as that piece of test gear.

Anyway, Project 7000 entails a cheap RTL sdr to do the panadaptor display when desired, and the R7000 to fulfill spectrum surveillance duties, especially of the mil air variety.

There are a number of worthy mods to do to a R7000, some of them from the SETI guys and others who use these things as radio telescopes. Wonder if it will hear the hydrogen line on a discone.

http://www.setileague.org/hardware/receiver.htm
http://www.thornett.net/Rosliston_Archive_2009-11/Modifying_ICOM_R7000_for_use_in_radio_astronomy_incl_AGC_Off_-excellent_article-_accessed_180811.pdf

Also, anything this old will need a full alignment to come close to or exceed the rx specs as stated in the manual so there's that to do also.

I know this thing's an antique and sdr rigs are so much more capable. I have a RSP2 that covers more spectrum than the R7000 does and offers wider spectrum display than that capable of an R7000 IF output, but that sdr mandates the use of a pc, and there's no gratifying tuning knob.

Knobs are nice to have.





more later

93

Utility / WWV 10, 15, 20, 25mHz

« on: June 20, 2019, 2024 UTC »

WWV 10, 15, 20, 25mHz were all copied @ 1808Z 20JUN19
10 and 15 were strongest, with 20 a close second and 25 in and out of noise level but good enough to set the reference oscillator when they were sending the 500/600Hz tones.

94

SDR - Software Defined Radio / Modified ExtIO for SDRUno/HDSDR with Direct Sampling Mode

« on: June 16, 2019, 1825 UTC »

Hi guys, I just wrote custom ExtIO driver for RTLSDR dongle, may be it will be interested for someone.
It has integrated DC remove filter and allows to setup any possible sample rate.
This ExtIO works through librtlsdr.dll from OSMOCOM (librtlsdr.dll should be renamed to rtlsdr.dll).

I wrote it because existing ExtIO_RTLSDR for some reason doesn't works in Direct Sampling mode with SDRUno. So, there is no way to receive MF and HF stations (0-14 MHz) with SDRUno and RTLSDR. This ExtIO works ok in such mode. Also I added DC remove filter, because it is missing from SDRUno.ExtIO, you can enable/disable it from ExtIO settings window.
https://www.rtl-sdr.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=4710

95

Equipment / Gear prices

« on: June 14, 2019, 2122 UTC »

Lately I've seen a lot of HAM rigs come waaaaaay down in price, mostly after the release of the IC7300. Icom priced the 7300 so low it wiped out the used market, often a used 7300 goes for less than $900, very tempting. So with the used market going flat I come across this;
W314 Icom IC-756Pro   $439.95
HF/VHF Amateur Transceiver
https://www.universal-radio.com/used/used7.html
The display is dim but there's a led replacement for the cfl that's fairly cheap and not too absurd to install. I've seen Pro original models with good displays going for $550 on qth.

The same dsp chips in the JRC NRD545 are inside the Icom 756Pro series so performance will be very similar in a lot of ways, and as a plus the Pros transmit 100w hf thru 6m, yet the NRD545 still commands a fairly high price, does not offer the fantastic fish finder every pro features, and is rx only.
That being said, they're my fav JRC and I've spent time with all of them from the 505 to the 545.

I note the Drake R8A/B also seems to be holding up in perceived value.

Don't even mention the likes of the RX340 or similar gov/commercial offerings, they still command several thousand dollars in the used market yet don't have a fish finder. A lowly $25 RTL V3 has more raw capability, only lacking in dynamic range, that the WJ1000s and RX340s.
https://www.universal-radio.com/used/sold004.html
https://www.universal-radio.com/used/sold605.html
A RTL V3 also can do multiple virtual receivers unlike the WJ and TT RX340 that only offer memories, I've had ten vrx up and operating with a lowly old pc and RTL V3.

Anyway, just some observations and wondering why rx boxen seem to be so overvalued compared to HAM rigs or similar or even greater performance and features.

96

VHF/UHF Logs, including satellites and radiosondes / How to track & recover a NWS weather balloon & radiosonde

« on: June 13, 2019, 2129 UTC »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=21&v=-2x-Jwu43Mg

97

Amateur Radio / HAM Musings

« on: June 12, 2019, 2033 UTC »

The following was my response to a query on various HAM techniques and thought it grandiose and/or pompous enough to deserve a wider audience;





On antennas,
In my experience, verticals open and close a band due the low angle of radiation/reception, however sometimes horizontal polarisation gets stronger signals out of a given sig, usually some time between fadein and fadeout. Verticals are grand! It would be interesting to see if adding more radials helps any to the average HAM hf vertical, sometimes they do, sometimes they don't. I have a metal roofed garage that would be a good test bed for a vertical. Keep in mind that when you hear "120 radials is the best", that figure is quoted by people who have no idea where it came from. It came from some guys trying to get the most out of an ambc antenna they were building back in the 1920s, and they ran out of wire after 120 radials, so they decried 120 as optimal.

As to beams, they're the closest thing to cheating in HAM radio.

As to wrapping toroids, I prefer solid wire with a thick varnish coating.
They keep in place easier when winding, however offer more resistance to winding itself due the fact they're stiffer than stranded. Surplus Sales of Nebraska as well as other vendors carries triple coated wire for this, I suppose one will use whatever they have. I hope you watched the vid link* I sent you regarding how wire types can effect efficiency. For high power use, winding the toroid with fiberglass cloth will help add insulation between the turns and the toroid as well as keep the wire from chaffing on the sometimes less than smooth toroid - there's often a ridge where the parting lines of the toroid mold met. Using dual cores should help with the losses that show up as heat in the core, less core for the same input power means more heat due to losses, once a certain heat level is reached (normally not something one faces often) the core is permanently altered in the magnetic domain, lightning strikes will do much the same if not worse. 

RG8X is better than RG58, but not better than RG8, RG213, and other better grades. I prefer RG8X for mobile hf use, as in a vehicle. LMR types are getting cheaper and should be used unless one wants portability as a factor in coax selection, anything with a solid shield will not like to be flexed a lot before the shield tears. The higher the freq the better the coax should be, even 20m deserves 9913 or LMR400 type coax, especially when dealing with weak signals. I've been considering the cable tv coax types to use at hf for some time now, especially the orange stuff that can be directly buried.

I read a study done by USCG on their antenna sites and they found interaction between pretty much any coax running near other coax - a lot of coax they used was bundled together in places for sake of whatever reason, often in the air for long stretches, and this was on rx, they didn't bother with looking at it from the tx standpoint. They had been using stranded shield coax with multiple shields for a large number of rx arrays, but found leakage to be present in most if not all lines so they went with a solid shielding and buried and/or separated more of the lines as they could to reduce crosstalk - but solid shield was the key factor. After reading this, I got the idea 9913 or LMR400 is the way to go for the HAM. even on hf.

On how many turns of wire on a toroid, some say fill it as much as possible as the more turns you get means more flux/reluctance/permeability, others say you have to leave a gap of about 1/5 total winding covered but that may be for a different design outcome, can't remember. If you have the means to test, and it might not take much for testing at hf, try it and see how well it works. Check the in and out power levels as well as core heating, and of course swr and return loss. For those tests all you'd need to do ad hoc testing is a swr/power meter or two, dummy load or antenna, and a ir thermometer.

On bands above 20m.
I love 15m and 10m! 15 is open more often than 10 even when 10 is rolling, and you will find about as many if not more HAMs on 15 than 10. I think you will find more dx, and more fine business operating on 15 than on the other bands above 20m. A vertical or beam is best here, but a wire high up can work too if the ionsophere is forgiving as it determines the angle of radiation in the ionosphere in all cases - the antenna determines the initial angle of radiation - the lower the better for dx. On the lower freqs like 40 and 80 it becomes very hard to beat a full size dipole or sloper/inverted V. On the higher bands, when they seem closed, send a cq and see if some other geek is listening!

Keep in mind dx is there typically an hour before and an hour after local sunrise and sunset, as well as at the target location. Also, pretty much any station in darkness can hear any other station in darkness, propagation notwithstanding.

73!










*
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMlKfHHR8FY

98

Equipment / On the Importance of Speaker Phasing

« on: June 03, 2019, 2118 UTC »

Speaker phasing is important.

The optimus speaker attached to the scanner seemed to be having reduced/distorted output lately and I considered that the scanner perhaps needed not just display bulbs but an alignment or other repair to bring back the clear, loud audio as in the past.

So as a test I reconnected the speaker to the external speaker jack to make sure the spring connectors held the wire firmly, and no audio resulted, making me positive the speaker was at fault and finally gave up, perhaps a shorted cap?

I opened the speaker and noted things looked fine.... and then considered the cable as the scanner's internal speaker had no issues producing clean audio. I had missed the wire and had clamped on to the insulation, no wonder the speaker didn't work.

Ensuring that continuity was made resulted in a working speaker, but the audio was really odd like before, some sigs where more or less ok, some sigs sounded like a poop salesman with a mouth full of samples. This made me wonder if the audio chip was going bad, wasn't getting enough current due a faulty psu, or the scanner needed an alignment after almost daily use since oh around 1995.

Disconnecting the cable from scanner and speaker allowed ohming out the input jack, testing verified the speaker was out of phase, go figure. Rectifying the mistake resulted in clean and clear audio.

If your speaker sounds like mush, perhaps you're inverted?

https://www.uaudio.com/blog/understanding-audio-phase/

99

Utility / CIS Navy on HF

« on: May 31, 2019, 1727 UTC »

                 Overview of Russian Federation Naval HF Comms

                                The Russian Navy
                            "The Crew—One Family"

                VMF - Voyenno Morskoy Flot Rossiyskoy Federatsii
                     Military Marine Fleet Russian Federation
                              ==================

 Surface Ships of the CIS Navy employ cw "41st Channel" via hf radio networks "Globus" (globe), "Equator" (self explanatory) or "Vympel" (Pennant)

Globe seems to be the top echelon command network while Equator may mean hemispherical comms regions, Vympel (Pennant) may mean comms between units under a specific flag/fleet command and their subordinates

For example;
 KRASNAYA OKTOBER (a very sneaky ficticious ruskii submarine) transmits to Murmansk RIT over the Vympel network, RIT then passes the traffic to Moscow RIW via the Globus network.

 Submarines of the CIS Navy employ superfast telegraph (SAD = Russian acronym for high speed cw?) via radio mode "Akula-Splav" (Akula = shark, Splav = Alloy) or "49th Channel" via hf radio networks "Globus" (Globe) or "Okean" (Ocean). "49th Channel" may be Akula mode specific rather than routing all digital mode traffic. To be precise, Akula isn't CW, it's phase coherent FSK and PSK in Akula II. Subs aren't the only units to deploy Akula.

Often, CW traffic passage is preceded by tuning procedures composed of a series of Vs and/or random dits and dashes.
All stations that are going to be heard in this net period will be tuning their systems to the net freq.
Radio checks take place after every day/night frequency change; 1800Z & 0600Z.
Sessions are closed with "ZNN ZNN sk sk" by the NCS.
As a general rule, expect QTC traffic on the hour, synoptic traffic at 0000/0300/0600 etc you get the idea
For example, right now 2222Z 13DEC19 there's the faintest of very fast CW on 12464, my guess 30wpm or better and way outta my league.


The terms "CIS Navy" (Commonwealth of Independant States Navy) and "RN" (Russian Navy) are used interchangeably.


                               The Easy Ones

 CIS Navy CW qrgs
Fleetwide primary freqs
08345 (1800Z to 0600Z)
12464 (0600Z to 1800Z).
However there are many regional frequencies that are used, and are being more used than primaries these days
The 0600/1800 QSY is apparently a suggestion not a maxim so one can find traffic on either freq regardless of the current Moscow Time; 3 hours ahead of UTC

8348 is a primary Pacific fleet frequency which may propagate to the US, also try:
3594
4048
4190
5233
5411
5142
6240
6242
6989
7630
7632
9142
10203
10834
10834
13636
13907
18373

If you're located in the midwestern US you'd logically try to hear traffic to Navy HQ St. Petersburg RAA on 8120 evenings/nights, and perhaps traffic to Navy HQ Moscow RIW on 8345 (after 1800Z) or 12464 (after 0600Z) as these HQ are geographically closer to the monitoring station than say Murmansk (artic circle) RIT 5343, 7467, 11155 or especially Vladivostok (pacific coast of Russia) RJS on 4048, 5411, 7632, 10203, 13636, if you lived on the west coast US you'd logically try for the opposite as Vladivostok is much closer and only a salty okean (ocean) away from you.

This will become even more apparent and important as the sunspot numbers keep dropping and propagation fails to deliver. Fortunately we have remote sdrs we can log into to get our itch scratched. Who coulda thunk in 1989 that today, from any place in the world that has innernet connection, one could freely log onto an sdr located in Moscow and tune the hf spectrum at will, perhaps mere blocks from Kreml.

Duplex Circuits;
Many RN CW nets in use are duplex, ship transmits on one freq, shore transmits on another.
RIW Moscow sends to ships on 9145, 11000, 14556
RCV Sevastopol sends to ships on 15586 day and 7566 night, with weather reports also on 5915, in the past on 10543
So when you hear traffic on 7345 or 12464 look for the other side on the above freqs, but these are by no means all in use. 

Behold!
http://www.udxf.nl/CISN-December-2015.pdf



 Callsigns CW Stations:
======================
RCV    Navy HQ Sevastopol
REA4  Airforce HQ Moscow
RIT    Navy HQ Severomorsk North Fleet
RJS    Navy HQ Vladivostok
RIW   Navy HQ Moscow
RMP   Navy HQ Kaliningrad
RMxx Warship Individual Callsign

 Voice (U/LSB):
=========
Rezim-A: In Red/Clear Voice
Rezim-B: In Green/Encrypted Using Yakta
Vpiriom:  Over to you
Priyom:   Reception (do you copy)

 
 As to Q Codes oft mentioned in RN cw comms:
========
QBE             Closing
QCM            Broken/Interrupted
QCM QYT6   MS5 Link is Broken
QDW            I listen on XXX freq
QRD            Q: Where are you going to?
QRD XXXX   A: I am going to freq XXX
QRO (?)       Increase power (shall I?)
QRP (?)       Decrease Power (shall I?)
QRR            CW Encrypted Groups Simplex
QRX            Q: When will you call me?
QRX 2222Z  A: I will call you at 2222Z
QSA?          Q; Whats your Strength of (my) Signal?
QSA2          A: Strength Of Signal is 2
QSU1          USB voice
QTC?           Q; How many messages do you have for me?
QTC3           A: you have 3 messages
QWH XXXX? Q; will you send on freq XXX?
QWH XXXX  A: I will send on freq XXX
QYR            81Bd FSK
QYS            SSB Voice Duplex
QYT4          OFDM 12 Channel psk data/encrypted voice, vessels
QYT6 QBE  Close MS5 Link
QYT6         MS5 Link
QYT9         75 Bd 200 Hz, fixed stations

CIS Forces often use Z and Q codes with much the same meaning as NATO Z and Q codes with a few of their own device.

 Q and Z codes used by NATO and CIS forces;
http://www.radiotelegraphy.net/qsignals.htm
http://www.radiotelegraphy.net/zsignals.htm


- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Common Daily Traffic Nets
Day
11165
12464 (Primary)
11000
10543

Night
08345 Northern Fleet (Primary)
08348 Pacific Fleet (Primary)

HQ/Naval Radio Reception Center Stations
RAA St. Petersburg National Defence Control Center
RDL All Strategic Nuclear Commands
RIT Severomorsk
RIW Moscow
RCV Sevastopol

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Headquarters/Naval Base Radio Reception Centers;
Frq:    Calls :
RAA :   14587(Sx)    12692 (Sx)    10795
RCV :   19201    13971 (Sx)    10309 (Sx)    08139    08014    07763
(Sx)    05916    05776    05736    05224    05094 (Sx)    03797
RDL :   22864    16912    14664    10452    08136
RIW :   14556(Sx)    12056 (Sx)    10540 (Sx)    07665    07664
RMP :   21438    12692 (Sx)    06832    05881    05775   04079 007
RJS :   16112
RIT :   12753    11155    06877    05443
RCB :   08816    05808    06877   05443
(Sx)  = Simplex
xxxxx = Frequency not known

Afloat/Airborne Units;
Frq:     Calls :
08020    RJE65    RJP24    RIR99
07861    RAL2     RFH2     RDU2    RHW2     RBL71
07815    RMW32    RMW36    RMW46
07786    RAL65    RHY73    RBDE    RMGB
06989    RAL2     RHQJ     RGH2    RMW2     RBL66
06957    RMW46    RGR97    RGR98   RGR88    RGR82     RGR85  RGR92
06836    RGR89    RGR90    RGR91   RGR94    RMW46
05823    RAL2     RKA2     RLO2    RBL70
05770    RWI2     RGY2     RHK6
05018    RJE65    RJP24
03353    RJP54    RJP54    RMJA    RMUW     REL5      REL5
03337    RMGZ     RJP54

===============================
 Russian MX CW Beacon Clusters:
==============================
3334.9 L-Marker St.Petersburg
3593.9 S-Marker Arkhangelsk
3594.0 C-Marker Moscow
3658.0 V-Marker Khiva-Abad Turkmenistan
4042.0 P-Marker Kaliningrad
4325.8 R-Marker Izhevsk/Ustinov
5153.8 P-Marker Kaliningrad
5153.9 S-Marker Arkhangelsk
5154.0 C-Marker Moscow
7038.8 P-Marker Kaliningrad
7038.9 S-Marker Arkhangelsk
7039.0 C-Marker Moscow
8494.8 P-Marker Kaliningrad
8495.0 C-Marker Moscow
10307.2
10528.0
10871.8 P-Marker Kaliningrad
10871.9 S-Marker Arkhangelsk
10872.0 C-Marker Moscow
13527.8 P-Marker Kaliningrad
13527.9 S-Marker Arkhangelsk
13528.0 C-Marker Moscow
13528.2 F-Marker Vladivostok
16331.8 P-Marker Kaliningrad
16331.9 S-Marker Arkhangelsk
16332.0 C-Marker Moscow
20047.9 S-Marker Arkhangelsk
20048.0 C-Marker Moscow

 Location:
============
C Moscow
F Vladivostok
L St.Petersburg
P Kaliningrad
R Ustinov
S Arkhangelsk
V Tashkent


 CIS AF/Navy HF Comms
--------------------------------------
Voice Freqs: all USB
"Long Range Aviation" generally means Tu95 and Tu22 bombers of the respective service

03555.0
04040.0 Russian Pacific Fleet
04150.0
04625.0 ?
04642.0
04672.0 Vologda Control
05420.0
05568.0
05596.0 Vorkuta, Amderma, Il'men, Arkhangelsk, Pechora, Syvkar (Syktyvkar) & NaryanMar
05617.0 Long Range Aviation
05628.0 Long Range Aviation
05635.0 Long Range Aviation
05700.0 Military Transport Aviation (VTA) (Apr 2018)
05803.0
05827.0
05830.0
05833.0 Long Range Aviation
05851.0 Russian Naval Air
05932.0
06296.5 ?
06490.0
06685.0 Military Transport Aviation (VTA)(secondary)
06689.0 Long Range Aviation (Pacific area)
06749.0 Military Transport Aviation (VTA)
06757.0 Ukrainian Air Force
07741.0
08033.0 Long Range Aviation (Sep-Oct) Bears, Tu22, etc
08090.0 Long Range Aviation (Oct-Apr)
08131.0 Long Range Aviation (Nov-Feb)
08136.0
08160.0 Baltic Fleet?
08192.0 Russian Pacific Fleet
08237.0 Russian Mediterranean Flotilla
08252.0 poss Russian AF
08294.0 Russian Pacific Fleet
08297.0 Russian Pacific Fleet
08439.0 Russian Pacific Fleet
08441.0
08847.0 Military Transport Aviation (Dec 2013)
08459.0 Baltic Fleet?
08884.0 Long Range Aviation (Pacific area)
08909.0 Long Range Aviation (May-Sep)
08950.0 Murmansk Control#
08974.0
10984.0 Russian Black Sea Fleet
11190.0 Ukrainian Air Force
11193.0 Moscow Radio#
11198.0 Khabarovsk Radio#
11200.0 Long Range Aviation-winter freq #170
11223.0 Long Range Aviation reserve
11226.0
11354.0 Russian Naval Aviation
11350.0
11360.0 Military Transport Aviation -primary
11362.0 Military Transport Aviation
11370.0 Long Range Aviation TU-95s
11380.0
11390.0 Murmansk Control#
15024.0 Moscow Radio#
18030.0 Military Transport Aviation

# Russian military aircraft will occasionally use Moscow Radio & Murmansk Radio
? Not positively identified

-------------------------------
 Russian Naval Air Transport Net
-------------------------------
Stations:
RJF94......Central Sector Station, Moscow      (PRIBOJ)
RJC38......Northern Sector Station, Murmansk   (NOVATOR)
RJC48......Southern Sector Station, Sevastopol (NORKA)
RCH84......Eastern Sector Station, Vladivostok (MONOLOG)
RCB........Western Sector Station, Kaliningrad (KRAKET)
Aircraft...Four figures assigned each aircraft (2319)



 Ground stations maintain communication with each other on separate frequencies; communication between Moscow and Vladivostok is often heard (RJF94-RCH84)

Station    C / S    Codename    QTH    Description
MOSCOW            RJF94    'PRIBOY'       ATC Central District
VLADIVOSTOK    RCH84    'MONOLOGUE'       ATC Eastern District
Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy          Base
Sovetskaya Gavan '             Base
KALININGRAD    RCB    'KRAKET'       ATC West Region
Chkalovsk                     Base
Nivenskoye                     Base
Bykhov                          Belarus Base
MURMANSK    RJC38    'NOVATOR'       ATC North Division
Olenia                             Base
Arkhangelsk                     Base
Severomorsk                     Base
Kipelovo                     Base
SEVASTOPOL    RJC48    'MINK'            Kacha    ATC Southern District
Gvardeyskoye                     Base
Veseloye                     Base
Oktyabrskoye                     Base
Kulbakino                     Base


 Coast Radio Stations:
=====================
04357 Ryga Radio
08293 Radio
08294 Ryga Radio
08297 Klaipeda Radio
08770 Radio
08773 Kaliningrad Radio
13086 Ryga Radio
13197 Odessa Radio

 Meteo Stations:
===============
03690.0 Tashkent Meteo FAX
04318.0 Moscow Meteo FAX
04560.0 Irkutsk Meteo Baudot RKR74
05108.0 Moscow Meteo FAX
09348.0 Tashkent Meteo FAX RCH72
14983.0 Tashkent Meteo FAX RBV76

 Commonly Heard Callsigns:
===============
ADJEK-06 Unknown
ARBAD Moscow CIV Aero
ARBAD-63 Unknown
AVRORA Unknown CIV Aero
BOREJ-96
C Moscow Navy Marker
CENTRE Unknown
COSMO Unknown
D Unknown/Obsolete
DAIHATJ-59 Unknown
F Vladivostok Navy Marker
GOY-2 Unknown
K Unknown/Obsolete
KRAKJET Unknown Airforce Operator
KRASJETJ-79 Unknown
L St.Petersburg Navy Marker
NAVATER Unknown Airforce Operator
O Unknown/Obsolete
P Kaliningrad Navy Marker
PAROS-XX Unknown
PIWON-24 Unknown
PLAVETS-41 Unknown Navy Operator
POBED-01 Unknown
PRAWA-82 Unknown Right ?
PRIBOY Unknown Airforce Operator
R Izhevsk/Ustinov Navy Marker
RADAN St.Petersburg CIV Aero
RAW-2
RBV-76 Tashkent Meteo
RCH-72 Tashkent Meteo
RCV Navy HQ Sevastopol
REA-4 Airforce HQ Moscow
REO Unknown
RHP-27
RIT Navy North Fleet HQ Severomorsk
RIW Navy HQ Moscow
RKR-74 Irkutsk Meteo
RMHW Warship Unknown
RMMA Warship Unknown
RMP Navy HQ Kaliningrad
ROMAN-XX Unknown
ROTOR-35 Unknown Navy Operator
S Arkhangelsk Navy Marker
SKORA Unknown CIV Aero
T Unknown/Obsolete
TRUAS Unknown CIV Aero
UDZ-27
URO Diplostation Tripolis?
UXW Diplostation London?
UVB-76
V Khiva-Abad Navy Marker
VORMET Unknown Airforce Operator
WQL Diplostation Unknown
Y Unknown/Obsolete
YAROK Kiev CIV Aero
ZAPAT-_9 Unknown
ZAVOD-24


 CIS Naval callsign convention and generally follow ITU convention.
Most calls; ship, shore, or air, prefix with R.
Stations are assigned signs from the RAA-RMZ range and RJC ## - RJH ##
There are exceptions to callsigns, for example Magadan, RTS

Aircraft seem to have a random 3/4/5F call after the R regardless of their home base.
Afloat units do not have calls related to their fleet; for example, Northern Fleet units from Murmansk do not prefix their calls with RJD.

RDL is generally believed to be a collective address to "all nuclear strategic forces", in essence RDL = EAM

WLHN is generally believed to be a collective address to all units of the Armed Forces

Submarine units don't have known given calls ota on hf, as subs mostly use laser/satcomm buoys with, presumably, Akula as backup. That being said, Akula is also used for recon/int work by afloat units (AGI) so not every Akula sig's going to be a sub.
http://i56578-swl.blogspot.com/2015/07/cis-navy-shark-akula.html
http://jproc.ca/rrp/rrp2/boresight.html


 Much traffic generated on CIS naval nets is comprised of position and local weather reporting, they seem to follow the reporting guidelines in this publication;
https://www.jcs.mil/Portals/36/Documents/Doctrine/pubs/jp3_59.pdf

 CIS NAVY Meteo Callsigns
RJE73 = BLACK SEA FLOT METEO
RJH45 = MOSCOW NAVAL METEO
RJH74 = NORTHERN FLEET METEO
RJD38 = BALTIC FLOT METEO
RJE65 = BLACK SEA FLOT HQ, NOVOROSSIYSK

 Hydrographic messages are normally sent every six hours – 0600z, 1200z, 1800z and 0000z.

With the above in mind, radio hobbyists can track certain CIS Naval assets from port to patrol area, AGI and subs excluded.



 Commonly active CIS Naval Base freqs
08460   RMP Baltic Fleet HQ at Kaliningrad
03395.5 Sevastopol  RCV (simplex)
04079   Kaliningrad RMP (duplex)
04376.5 White Sea area ships calling Severodvinsk (duplex)
04635   White Sea area ships calling Severodvinsk (duplex)
05411   Vladivostok RJS (duplex)
08120   Navy HQ St. Petersburg RAA (simplex)
08345   Ship night primary (duplex)
08348   Pacific Fleet ship primary (duplex)
09145   Moscow RIW (duplex)
11000   Moscow RIW (duplex)
11155   Severomorsk RIT (duplex)
12464   Ship day primary (duplex)
14556   Moscow RIW (duplex)
19201   Sevastopol RCV (weather/nav warnings)

 White Sea:
4376.5
4095.5

 Caspian Sea
3877.5 Simplex

Ship of electronic reconnaissance project (example 864/B Baltiysk 72DRK)
Russian AGI class of ships (remember the USS Pueblo?) do not send hf cw weather/position reports unlike other afloat units, I presume they have laser/satcoms as well as Akula just like the subs. As most USN task forces grow their own RN AGI tail and there seem to be continuous RN AGI haunting NATO and USN naval bases, their position is known to USN regardless if they send on hf, the NATO/USN radio traffic they intercept is likely sent by laser/satcom to RAA and Moscow. There may be more than one AGI tailing USN forces, or near Cape Kennedy when rocket launches are to take place as missile telemetry is a high priority target for AGI ships of any nation.

 Also while RN forces use Cyrillic morse, they use a lot of Q and Z codes with the same meaning Q and Z codes have in the west.

Afloat units can bypass their respective HQ and contact Moscow directly. This may be due to propagation not favoring HQ or by command. Likewise, afloat and airborne units have freqs they guard that are a hotline from Moscow for flash messages, as well as their HQ freq. It's not uncommon for various HQ or even afloat/airborne units to relay comms from units that aren't organic to that command.

CIS Naval forces have some 600 known HF freqs in use, you can find a list at udxf or elsewhere but units are presumed to be frequency agile and can pop up anywhere.

CIS Naval messaging has a hierarchy like most other military message systems;
MNL “Monolith” Flash (XXX in RN cw)
VZD “Air”         Immediate
RKT “Rocket”    Priority
SML “Aircraft”   Routine


CIS Naval cw is often part of RN digital bcasts for setup and takedown of links, typically BFSK T600 modems, with the cw being created by employing a single tone of the BFSK pair as the cw carrier. I presume the modem traffic from land units is along the lines of the NATO/USN BRASS S4285 and 50/75Bd FSK bcasts.
https://www.isode.com/whitepapers/brass-to-br1eta.html



 Main Russian Naval radio centers / callsigns in Rossii and English

 Globus (Global Network)
RIW / RJE56 / PROGRESS / KOMPASS
Moscow
This station gets input from all other HQ, while lower commands get input from their respective afloat units.
This is the seat of political command.

RAA / RJC66
St. Petersburg National Defence Control Center
Russian Naval C3 center, base component is RJC66
This is Russian Navy HQ. All lower HQ and afloat/airborne units send to this station as SOP but those stations can and do bypass HQ and send direct to Moscow when tasked or when unable to raise HQ or get a relay to HQ. Certain priority traffic (Akula reception, typically meaning a sub or AGI) is simultaneously sent on to RIW via all means available, cw, fsk, land line, etc. Submarine related traffic has highest priority in RN comms.


 Okean (Ocean Network)
HQ Calls and locations
Severomorsk RIT
Kaliningrad RMP
Sevastopol  RCV
Astrakhan   RJD52
Vladivostok RJS

 Northern Fleet (Siewiernyj Flot)
(Arctic regions, North Atlantic Ocean, North sea, Norwegian Sea, white Sea, Northern inland waterways)
Severomorsk   RIT (+ RJH57) / Wolfram
Severodvinsk  RJD99 Swetok, "Flower"
Iokanga       RJD80 Jagernaja / Ostrovnoj / Gremikha / Murmansk / Svetlana
Polyarny      RIR2  Priroda, "Nature"
Murmansk      RJD56 FlĂger, "Vane"

The Northern Fleet has also been tasked with Arctic Joint Strategic Command. This arctic activity is going to increase greatly in the next decades as Russia is spending billions on revitalising/modernising old bases as well as building new ones. Increases in personnel are likewise taking place as Moscow stakes claim to vast natural resources and the military advantages of an arctic position. We might expect to see more NATO and US activity in this region to counter the perceived threat.
 
 Baltic Fleet (Baltijskij Flot)
(Baltic Sea, North sea, English Channel, Inland waterways)
Kaliningrad     RMP (+RJD71) / Westnik, "Herald", "Messenger"
St. Petersburg  RJD85 / Skakun, "Race horse", "Jumper"
Baltiysk        RJD69 / Iskatelx, "Seeker"

 Black Sea Fleet
(Black Sea, Mediterranean Sea, Caspian Sea, Red Sea, inland waterways)
Sevastopol   RCV / Gwozdika, "Cloves"
Novorossiysk RJE65 / Topolx, "White Poplar"

 Caspian Flotilla (Caspianski Flot)
(Caspian Sea, inland waterways)
Astrakhan RJD52 / Zazor, "Clearance" or poss "Gap"

 Pacific Fleet (Tihookeanskij Flot)
(North Pacific Ocean, South Pacific Oceans, Bering Sea, inland waterways)
Vladivostok                 RJS / Grejder "Grader"
Vladivostok                 RJC60 / Ăśrist "Lawyer (Jurist)"
Strelok aka Pavlovsk Bay    RJD97 / Ă–jnara "Sycamore"
Petropavlomsk Kamchatskiy   RCC  / Dekanat "Deanery (Deans office)"
Sowgwanx/Sovjetskaya Gavan  RJD93 / Flejta "Flute"

 Indian Ocean
(Indian Ocean, South Atlantic Ocean, inland waterways)
Bishkek  RJH25 / Sibirak "Siberian"



Other RN bases such as training, hydrographic, testing;

 Khabarovsk (Vladimirovka)
RAB99 / Gerkules (h is pronounced g in Rossii)

 Moscow (MANIKINO)
RJE56 / SOKOL-2
 
 Kyrgyzstan
RJH25 / KAKTUS
TX/RX site

 Krasnodar (MARTANSKAYA)
RJH63 / GERAKL
Comms center/time signal authority

 Chaldovar, KZ (Karabalta)
RJH66 / Marevo
Comms center/time signal authority

 Vileyka, BLR
RJH69 / ANTEY
Comms center/time signal authority

 Arkhangelsk (VOZHDORMA)
RJH77 / ATLANT
Comms center/time signal authority

 Nizhniy Novgorod
RJH90
Comms center/time signal authority

 Druzhniy
RJH99
Comms center/time signal authority

RIQ88 is an unid land station in control of a transport aircraft network.
8816 seems to be their primary ops channel with 7932 as backup/emergency, monitored traffic is often in contact with Moscow RJF94 and/or Vladivostok RCH84

Don't expect to hear littoral operations, tugs, repair ships, etc on hf as they will likely be using v/uhf.


 RN Submarine Squadrons
Base/Call           Unit           QTH/LAT/LON                  Function
GADZHIEVO 12th Submarine Squadron  6915N/3320           Maritime Base
OSTROVNOY/RJD80 'SVETLANA'                            Sea Base     
GREMIKHA, MURMANSK-140 4419th Marine Base               Maritime Base
LOKANGA                             Sea Base
URA GUBA          35 km from Murmansk    Sea Base
ARA                                     Sea Base
VIDAYEVO 7th Division of Submarines                     Maritime Base
NERPICH'YA 18th Division of Submarines ZAPADNAYA LITSA  Sea Base
BOLSHAYA LOPATKA        ZAPADNAYA LITSA     Sea Base
MALAYA LOPATKA           ZAPADNAYA LITSA     Sea Base
YAGEL'NAYA 24.31 Division of Submarines    SAIDA bay     Maritime Base,
ANDREEV                             Sea Base
TERIBERKA                             Sea Base
PECHENGA  conventional submarines and escorts           Maritime Base
OLEN'YA                             Sea Base
GUBA OKOL'NAYA/RIQ88                          Sea Base
VLADIMIR PORT                             Sea Base
BELOMORSK Kola Flotilla, surface ships and underwater   Sea Base 
Tiksi/RLU8                                              Sea Base




Monitoring Russians afloat was perhaps more interesting and easy back in the days when there was an insane amount of Russian Merchant Marine traffic on hf.
No matter what time of day, you could find some poor faktori/akademik/ryba ship sending messages back home for crew or admin even when the bands were dead. They used cw, but much traffic was in the form of radiogramma, radiograms, sent via BFSK SITOR. If you had a PK232 with the SIAM rom you could copy in 3rd shift Cyrillic if you wanted, I did sometimes but much more often simply used ITA2. In ITA2 mode, Russian words would in many cases almost be translated into something an English speaker could understand, and could follow the message gist. If it was a kryptogrammy being sent, it was 5F groups so don't waste your time.

One always kept in mind that being a totalitarian state, every soviet merchant ship was a military vessel, kinda like how most soviet airliners had jumpseats for paratroopers. "Trawlers" were often festooned with myriad m/h/v/uhf antennae, sure they had to fish, but the kgb/gru crew members ran the elint gear below decks trolling for signals while the rest of the crew cast nets.

This every trawler = a RN AGI mentality pissed off a lot of the five eyes units tasked with monitoring every Russian ship afloat, no matter how small and/or boring its activity.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Five_Eyes
But NSA had to have the data, knowing that if it rated a trawler it was obviously something the soviets were interested in, thus something NSA was interested in.

Hard to imagine the fortune and lives spent on this crap.

I must admit SITOR worked pretty good for the most part and seemingly links much faster and more reliably than many ARQ modes used even today, but it's not as hardy a mode or as fast as the newer stuff. The Russians liked SITOR so much they devised their own modifications to it beyond 3rd shift Cyrillic and used it when everyone else had gone to other means. Now I suppose a lot of Russian MM traffic is via satphone text and voice.

Who knows, you might someday monitor "The Kuz" (Kiev Class Aircraft Carrier Admiral Kuznetsov), or the "Yuri D" (Borei-class submarine Yury Dolgorukiy)

                  “Tremble, bourgeoisie! You’re done with!”




----------------------------
 RN Naval Digital Modes
----------------------------

 T600

https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/CIS-36-50
http://www.wavecom.ch/content/ext/DecoderOnlineHelp/default.htm#!worddocuments/cis3650.htm
T600 (and derivatives, of wich there are several, some in use by other RN forces) is the actual name for the modem, it's also called BEE and 36/50 by hobbyists

While a Baudot decoder will print on T600 sigs, it's not Baudot code so one needs a decoder crafted for T600.
Apparently T600 employs 3:4 encoding for error check, similar to SITOR in that respect. I suppose T600 is the most common RN digital (non cw) mode on hf.

Some of these T600 freqs are up continuously as a kind of channel marker, idling (looks like reversals to a Baudot decoder) until a message arrives, others only send when there is traffic, at H+10, 20, 30, 40 & 50:

Simulcast T600:
1. 10712, 11088, 15778, 16808, 20536, 22413
2. 5890, 9224, 11524, 14581, 16207, 19688, 19936
3. 14192, 16234

RDL cw and T600:
(simulkeyed with 21.1) 8130, 10164 6. 3196, 5846 7. 5178, 8436
(simulkeyed with 18.1) 3363, 3861, 4043, 4446, 4582, 4602, 5268, 5438, 6342, 6962, 7657, 7816, 8488, 8508, 9346, 10452, 10535, 11468, 12098, 12631, 12741, 13032, 14411, 14664, 15768, 15871, 16912, 17460, 18764, 19210, 20096, 22864

The cw traffic is comprised of opchat between the ends of the link using mark or space as the cw carrier, normally taking place before, between, and/or after T600 traffic. This opchat may have interesting tidbits and is sole reason some monitors watch T600 channels.


Commonly heard in US;
14411, 14664, 16206, 16808, 17460

For an up to date list of T600 channels you will want to get the latest logs from udxf.io or similar hobbyist websites.
That being said, one of my goto T600 channels to watch as a prop indicator is 11039.

Rivet is a free to use decoder often used by hobbyists to decode RN Navy digital traffic, and supports these modes;
Baudot (various speeds) : Used by amateurs , weather stations and other users.
CCIR493-4 : A HF selective calling mode
CIS36-50 (50 baud only currently) : Used by the Russian Navy.
CROWD36 : Used for Russian diplomatic and intelligence messages
FSK200/500 : Used for Russian diplomatic and intelligence messages
FSK200/1000 : Used for Russian diplomatic and intelligence messages
FSK (raw) : For advanced users to investigate unknown FSK modes
GW FSK (100 baud) : A commercial ship to shore data system.
XPA (10 and 20 baud) : Believed used for Russian intelligence messages.
XPA2 : Believed used for Russian intelligence messages.
https://github.com/IanWraith/Rivet


 AKULA

- a signal of national communications "SHARK", used in the Navy. Suffice it to the old system, the transmission is encrypted, of the characteristics, the preamble begins with twice the "plus" in terms of duration, spacing is exactly equal to twice the speed of manipulation, and manipulation without breaking phase.

(Band Width)    ~1800 Hz
(Low Range)    ~500-600 Hz, SBB
(Baud Rate)    500 Hz
(Carriers)    2
(Shift)    1000 Hz
(RX mode)    SSB

AKULA-II
Band Width)    ~900 Hz
(Low Range)    ~250-300 Hz, SBB
(Baud Rate)    500 Hz
(PSK Carriers)    2
(Shift)    500 Hz
(RX mode)    SSB
The above Akula info translated from the RUScanner webpage

Akula = shark in Rossii
The Akula modem is a phase coherent BFSK burst modem used by submarine and surveillance forces of the Russian Navy. I suppose the subs can either deploy a vertical from conning tower, towed buoy, or water jet antenna to send via, but 15kw on hf to a trailing wire antenna a meter or so below surface might do too.

The Akula-II modem is a complex, dual-channel Differential BPSK burst modem.
http://staff.ustc.edu.cn/~jingxi/Lecture%209_10.pdf
"Dolphin" is a minor variation of the Akula radio mode(s)
"Ishmael" and "Dnieper" was similar

Parse ASCII transparent charset and synchronous framing or raw bits to view transport and payload.
Akula ACF; 1356 2594 2713

Traffic has/may consist of 10 five-digit groups, time in the air - 0.72 seconds (in closed mode).
RN Submarines have employed up to 15 kW output power in Akula mode.

Akula messages received by shore stations are instantly relayed to the CIC of the RN on all available communication channels. Akula has also been noted in use by surface "recon" ie surveillance units and might be a method used for transmitting emergency traffic of flash precedence by Akula equipped RN units.

Akula messages are copied via 135 radio reception centers of the Russian navy, keeping in mind submarine-related comms have highest priority in Russian Navy

A short BPSK burst is seen before BFSK Akula traffic commences, I presume this is indication Akula-II hardware is in use. I also presume Akula is based on WW2 German efforts to do the same thing, covertly send messages from submarines to HQ on hf;
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kurier_system
However the kurier system was more or less just very fast morse, its main benefit in reducing the amount of time a signal was ota, thereby reducing chances of discovery and direction finding. The main problem with short duration hf comms, other than propagation, is a noise burst can take out a portion of or entire short communications burst, not to mention bit smearing from multipath that will likewise also be present to one degree or another.

Buy you an Akula modem!
https://www.speechpro.ru/product/voennaya-produkciya/ustrojstvo-peredachi-informacii-r-758is/specification

------------------------------------------------------------
Akula product info;
"Information Transmission Device R-758IS (Akula)
General information

    Group of operation 2.3.1, 2.1.1, 2.2.1 GOST RV 20.39.304-98 (GOST RV 20.39.304-98 is somewhat akin to ACP and/or STANAG but for Rossii)
    Entering and correction of reports using the keyboard with control on the built-in display
    Creating and storing a list of standard reports
    Archiving of the transferred reports in non-volatile memory
    Built-in automatic self test system
    By connecting compatible with existing equipment

Specifications
Power supply 220v with a frequency of 50/400 Hz
40W maximum power consumption
Weight 3.6 kg
Dimensions (width X depth, height), mm 220x285x75 (without shock absorbers)
Full appointed service life of 25 years
Warranty period of 5 years"
---------------------------------------------------------------

Speech Technology Center, LLC (Akula Manufacturers)
Year of foundation    1990

For contact   
196084, St. Petersburg, Krasutsky street, 4
Tel .: (812) 325-8848, Fax: (812) 327-9297
Website: www.speechpro.ru
E-mail: info@speechpro.com
Administration    Khitrov Mikhail Vasilyevich - General Director

Main activities   
development, production; sale; research activities

Own production   
multichannel digital black boxes P-424M and P-425M, installed on submarines, ships of the Navy and on airplanes;
Information Transmission Device R-758IS - preparation of data for the transmission of digital messages in the modes: "Shark", "Splav-Info", "Integral", "Splav P-608"; Morse Code Sensor (KM) - a mock-up sample that has been tested on ships of the Navy

Supplied Products   
multichannel digital black boxes P-424M and P-425M, installed on submarines, ships of the Navy and on airplanes;
Information Transmission Device R-758IS - preparation of data for the transmission of digital messages in the modes:
 "Shark", "Splav-Info", "Integral", "Splav P-608"

Services   
performing particularly complex phonoscopic examinations and studies
------------------------------------------------------------------
Speech Technology Center product "Integral" is the corresponding receiver/sensor for Akula modems.



Speaking of Russian Radio Hardware....
This was noted in Fritz Nusser's excellent piece on RN/CIS Navy;
"R-608N / R-608P Emergency Radio Set
HF transmitter/receiver for use onboard surface ships and submarine on the emergency frequncies of the Navy.
Frequency range;
3.6 ... 3.8
4.5 ... 4.7
6.1 ... 6.3
8.2 ... 8.4
10 ... 10.3
12.4 ... 12.7
16.5 ... 16.8
20.0 ... 22.4
MHz with 10 fixed frequencies.
Output power 20 W (70 W short time)
Modes A1A, R3E, H3E, F1B.
Manufacturer is Russian Inst. for High Power Radio Engineering OJSC (St. Petersburg)"
If they sell these things on the open market without changing their freq ranges they just told us where to look for their emergency frequencies.



 AT-3004D

This aging PSK/MFSK/OFDM modem is in use by RN forces and is likely or has been replaced with newer and more capable equipment AT-3104. That being said, it's all over the spectrum in use by Russian Navy for the most part I presume the 3104 is backward compatible with 3004.
Traffic consists of text/data and encrypted voice.
http://priyom.org/military-stations/russia/at-3004d
https://www.sigidwiki.com/wiki/CIS-12

Something to consider is that while elite RN forces, submariners to flyboys, often get the newest and most advanced weaponry and electronics, elements farther back from the point of the spear have to make do with perhaps obsolescent and certainly older equipment, eventually as more advanced gear comes into the TOE (table of equipment) more units will be so equipped.
They've developed some neat gear, they just can't afford to make a lot of it right now.

This technology trickle down theory has always been the case apparently. For example, in the late 50s and early 60s as Akula was being developed and tested in the field, only certain subs got the equipment, no surface units had it until much later, like into the 90s. This likely coincided with the desire for RN forces to fight war in a nuclear environment, meaning to be able to fight in a contaminated battlefield, and  have the equipment to enable one to do so.
This is one reason why the changeover from tube type electronics to solid state is slow in the going, as tube gear has a much greater tolerance to emp. Today I presume most electronics in RN Navy use to be solid state, and to have emp protection devices and protocols in place to protect said solid state devices.

Today you can actually buy an Akula modem from the maker in Russia, so why not equip every unit with the best and newest at least for compatibility's sake? Perhaps Russia is counting on commercial orders to ramp up production of gear and hide the cost in the volume sold, kinda like having your enemy buy your weapons for you. Wonder what the world market for a hf burst modem is. Also from the pics they're not very small and are likely heavy, I suppose the waveform could be written into a pc app for tx/rx.

Testing and development of new systems, communications and weapons both, is taking place in actual combat in places like Syria, and I wouldn't be surprised to find it in use in the Yemeni/Saudi war. Slcms launched from RN subs have overflown Iran to get to targets in Syria - a test and a message sent to the west at the same time. New tanks and antitank missile defense systems are being tested in Syria too. RN has port facilities at Tartus and Lataika Syria, ringed with S400 air defense artillery systems.

Wouldn't come as a surprise to find the recent incidents where US warships went off course and ran into other shipping was due to RN electronic warfare units testing new toys. Eastern Ukraine is also a testbed of Russian EW gear. Iran dropped a US drone and reverse engineered it because Russia gave them the means to capture the drone.


Resources on the topic;

Tony's excellent piece on Monitoring the Russian Navy
https://planesandstuff.wordpress.com/2015/07/02/monitoring-the-russian-navy-part-one/

RN Navy calls;
https://planesandstuff.wordpress.com/russian-navy-callsigns/

Fritz Nusser's excellent piece on RN/CIS Navy
http://www.udxf.nl/Russian%20navy.pdf


credit due all who have shared and taught what they have discovered to aging itching ears

100

Utility / RUAF Bomber/Escort flights

« on: May 28, 2019, 2345 UTC »

Lately our friends the Russians have been probing Alaska air defenses with visits from nuclear capable bomber aircraft, often accompanied by fighters and tankers. This makes for interesting listening for those in range of v/uhf comms of our guests as well as our responding intercept aircraft, but what about the rest of us who are hundreds if not thousands of miles away? Well, this is for you;


--------------------------------------------------------------
 Russian Air Force Stations
Note: This information can change at any time
Frequency (MHz)    Signal Mode    Callsign    Note
2.737                                  CW / Digital    REA4    Air Force HQ Moscow
3.633                                                CW    CEJX    
4.179                                 CW / Digital    REA4    Air Force HQ Moscow
4.672                                               USB    Vologda Radio    Sometimes call checks Il-76
4.755                                                USB    Blesk 37 Ja Skat 07    Possible Air Force use
5.312                                                CW          Russian Strategic Air Force TU-95 ground CW frequency
5.620                                               CW    Russian Strategic Air Force CW Ground Frequency
5.832                                               CW    RICARJ    72131, 72132-TU-22 from Renchovo
5.835                                               CW    Russian Strategic Air Force TU-95 CW ground frequency
6.685                                               USB    PROSELOK KORSAR KLARNETIST     Traffic control comms air force Chkalvosky Moscow Region
7.940                                                CW    REA4    Air Force HQ Moscow
8.029                                               CW          Russian Strategic Air Force Bombers TU-95 CW Ground Spring Primary Frequency
8.090                                              USB    NABOR SHAPORA Russian Strategic Air Force Bombers TU-95  Spring Frequency
8.033                                               USB         Russian Strategic Air Force Bombers TU-95 Autumn Frequency
8.112                                               CW    BALANS KATOLIK  Russian Strategic Air Force TU-95 CW Winter ground frequency
8.131                                              USB    BALANS KATOLIK  Russian Strategic Air Force Bombers TU-95 Winter Frequency
8.162                                              CW    Russian Strategic Air Force Bombers T-95  Ground Autumn Primary  Frequency
8.170                                              CW     6PLS D2WD    Russian Strategic Air Force Bombers TU-95 Spring Air CW Frequency
8.816                                              CW    Naval Air Transport
8.847                                             USB    Traffic control comms air force Chkalvosky Moscow Region
8.895                                               CW    Russian Strategic Air Force TU-95 Summer CW Ground Frequency
8.909                                              USB    OCHISTKA, PROCELKA    Russian Strategic Air Force                              Summer TU-95 Frequency
 8990                                                USB        OCHISTKA, PROCELKA    Russian Strategic Air Force                              Winter TU-95 Frequency
8.252                                              USB    Russian Air Force Unknown Unit
9.027                                               CW    Russian Strategic Air Force TU-95 Bombers Autumn CW Air Frequency
9.128                                                CW     P7YR W6SY QYYI  Russian Strategic Air Force TU-95 Bombers Summer Air  CW Frequency
11.072                                                 CW    REA4    Air Force HQ Moscow
11.354                                               USB    RJF94 / NOVATOR PRIBOJ KROCKET    Russian Naval Air Transport Command
11.360                                               USB    PROSELOK KORSAR    Traffic control comms air force Chkalvosky airfield Moscow Region
18.030                                               USB     KORSAR    Traffic control comms air force Chkalvosky Moscow Region

 Known Russian Strategic Bomber VHF frequencies:
 124.000 128.500 136.250 138.550 284.650 289.000 358.125

Notes on TU-95 Strategic bombers communications:
If the TU-95 CW markers are active its a indication that bombers are in the air and its possible to monitor USB frequencies. Every 20 minutes lasting for 2 minutes a single letter will be repeated by CW. Its always on the H+00, H+20, H+40 and normally hand set. Commonly marker W is heard probaly from Moscow Strategic and Long Range aviation headquarters. G marker possibly comes from Russian Ukrainka Air Base in Amur District in Far East Russia. Other undefined markers are Q, R and Z. C marker is used by TU-95 bombers used by Russian Navy from Moscow Naval HQ. Arkhangelsk Severomorsk naval base use S marker.

The bomber formations use  callsings. Known callsigns are: TRL5 – Spring TV6P, IZ2J and KFE4 – Summer 4ASU, QZ6Y and PUO7 – Autumn IWV4 – Winter. Three figure groups are used in messages, although is speculated that five figure groups are actually used.

The ground communications to aircraft using USB voice uses callsings such as NABOR, BALANS and KATOLIK that are fixed and are not affected by the seasonal changes.
------------------------------------------------------

As Russian bomber flights have been seen to use the local air defense channel for air to air chats when visiting European NATO airspace, one might expect them to fire up on HFGCS.




Also see here for an excellent summary of Russian HF use;
http://i56578-swl.blogspot.com/p/russcomms.html

101

SDR - Software Defined Radio / Sneak preview: new Krypto500 release!

« on: May 28, 2019, 2229 UTC »

Sneak preview: new Krypto500 release!

May 27, 2019

The new Krypto500 v1.265 release is just a few days away, so here's a quick peek at what it will contain:

 

New, integrated support and control for (click logos for more information):

 

L-3 Narda SignalShark

 

SDRPlay RSP1, RSP1a, RSP2, RSP2pro and RSPDuo
https://www.comintconsulting.com/single-post/2019/05/26/Sneak-preview-new-Krypto500-release





Sdrplay has made the big time. Now if we could just get the K500 folks to do us a hobbyist version of their wonderful app.

102

Utility / 11170 USB modem bursts

« on: May 28, 2019, 2223 UTC »

11170 USB Unid modem bursts @ 2222Z 28MAY19

103

Amateur Radio / HAM Radio FUNgus

« on: May 24, 2019, 1931 UTC »

What is your fav thing in HAM radio?

For a long time I did jt65 solely and it was ossum because my antenna as well as output power limitations have always been poor at best, it was a miracle of radio to see dx respond to my cq. Great fun! That being said, I did work Bear Island once, an island few km north of Finland, on 15m with 100w ssb, as well as some island in the Pacific. Oddly, 10m hasn't been as effective or as "fun" as 15m, making 15 my fav band.

In other cases I liked listening to dx stations work other dx stations...... until the inevitable Euro or US HAM came along and ruined the fungus.

Also a bit of easypal sstv with the gang on 7173.

What modes do you enjoy?

104

Shortwave Broadcast / ERT Foni Tis Helladas 9420 2303Z 23MAY19

« on: May 23, 2019, 2304 UTC »

Clean sig, fading a bit, 2 om in Greek discussion, perhaps a callin.

105

Shortwave Broadcast / WRMI 9955kHz 2255Z 23MAY19

« on: May 23, 2019, 2300 UTC »

Clean sig, S9 (50uV), Closing Time by Semisonic, into ID. beaming 170 to Hispanic America.