There’s something in the (w)air

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Hi to all the SWLing Post community. Here’s news of what Imaginary Stations will be bringing to the airwaves this weekend.

On Saturday 20th June at 1100 hrs UTC on 6160 kHz and again on Sunday 21st June at 1300 hrs UTC on 6160 kHz and 2000 hrs UTC on 3975 kHz/6160 kHz via Shortwave Gold we bring you the sound of WAIR – Always Independent Radio.

This episode is air based, so we’re talking songs about winged travel, windmills (of your mind) and possibly leaves falling off trees. We won’t be playing songs that feature words that have the “air” sound in them like chair, stair and hair but then again we may. Tune in and enjoy the sound of some breezy based shortwave radio this weekend!

And on Wednesday 24th June at 1800 UTC on 3975 kHz/6160 kHz we bring you Skybird Jams. It’s “Music to increase your attention span” with DJ Frederick, in other words extended tunes in all genres (and yes, ‘jam bands’).

Also on Wednesday 24th June 2026, at 0200 hrs UTC on 9395 kHz on WRMI we have WHFM – Herman’s Radio and Record Room. This is the fourth in a series of programmes recorded by DJ Frederick Moe in memory of his father Herman (1919-2001) and feature mid-century sounds including country, jazz, folk and easy listening.

For more information on all our shows, please write to us at [email protected] and check out our old shows at our Mixcloud page here.

FastRadioBurst23

RTI Test Broadcast on Sunday, June 21, 2026

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, David Iurescia, who shares the following announcement from Radio Taiwane International’s French Language service (first the English translation, then the original in French):

Dear Listener,

The French Service would like to inform you that during August 2026 (August 7–30), Radio Taiwan International (RTI) will broadcast directly from its Tamsui transmission site in northern Taiwan to Europe and North Africa.

To determine the most suitable frequencies, we will conduct a test broadcast on Sunday, June 21. The frequencies and schedule are as follows:

15145 kHz — 1700–1710 UTC
11995 kHz — 1715–1725 UTC
11995 kHz — 1730–1740 UTC
9545 kHz — 1745–1755 UTC

The two frequencies that provide the best reception will be selected for the August broadcasts.

A special QSL card will be sent to listeners who submit reception reports. Reports may be sent by email to the French Service or via the radio’s online reception report form.

Thank you for listening and for your continued support.

French Service
Radio Taiwan International

Original message in French:

Chère auditrice, cher auditeur,

Le service français vous informe que durant le mois d’août 2026 (du 7 au 30 août), Rti procèdera à une diffusion directe depuis le centre de transmission de Tamsui, dans le nord de Taïwan, vers l’Europe et l’Afrique du nord.

Afin de chosir les fréquences les plus appropriées, nous prévoyons un essai de diffusion le dimanche 21 juin. Voici les fréquences et horaires de cette diffusion :

Fréquence 15145 kHz, 17h00-17h10, temps universel

Fréquence 11995 kHz, 17h15-17h25, temps universel

Fréquence 11995kHz, 17h30-17h40, temps universel

Fréquence 9545 kHz, 17h45-17h55, temps universel

Les deux fréquences les plus appropriées seront retenues pour cette diffusion estivale.

Une carte QSL spéciale vous sera envoyée pour confirmer vos rapports d’écoute que vous pouvez nous adresser par courriel au service français ou via le formulaire en ligne de la radio.

Merci de votre écoute et de votre fidélité.

Service français

Radio Taiwan International

Immediate Frequency Change for VORW Radio International’s broadcast to East Asia

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Dear Listeners,

Due to significant interference which has emerged from a neighboring station – causing reception issues for the existing broadcast on 9705 kHz, I have made the decision to immediately change frequencies in order to resolve this issue.

This one-time newsletter is being sent in order to inform listeners of this change.

Effective immediately, the transmission to East Asia will now be heard on 9740 kHz (9.740 MHz) instead of 9705 kHz.

The Transmitter power, broadcast time and target area remain exactly the same – this change is being made solely to manage the issue of interference, to ensure clear reception to listeners in the target area and beyond!

Here is the updated broadcast schedule:

Thursdays 0900 UTC – 9740 kHz – Paochung 300 kW – East Asia, Southeast Asia, Pacific, the Americas

Each program is 1 hour in length and the aim of this radio show is to provide good music and commentary to listeners worldwide. Oftentimes, listener music requests are taken and played – and all are invited to participate.

Reception reports (which will be verified with an E-QSL) and additional feedback are most welcome at [email protected]

Thank you for your patience, understanding and reception feedback – which informed me of this reception issue and allowed me to resolve it promptly!

John Jurasek
VORW Radio International.

 

DXing Comes to the Madison Clinic

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Dennis Dura, who shares news from Radio World that DXing will be featured for the first time at the Midwest Regional Broadcasters Clinic (“Madison Clinic”) this September. The presentation will introduce broadcast engineers and industry professionals to the fascinating world of radio signal propagation and DX reception—and perhaps inspire a few new DXers along the way.

Read the full article at Radio World: https://www.radioworld.com/news-and-business/show-news/dxing-will-be-featured-at-the-madison-clinic

1976 U.S. Bicentennial Callsigns

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Dan Greenall, who writes:

Hi Thomas,

In 1976, amateur radio operators in the United States were allowed the option of using a special prefix in place of their regular one to celebrate the country’s bicentennial year. Many amateurs issued special QSL cards for this bearing the new prefix, making reference to the US bicentennial year on the front.

Others simply modified their existing cards. The bicentennial commissions in Massachusetts and South Dakota even made up fill-in-the-blank commemorative QSL cards.

WL1CEN was a special events station in Lexington, Massachusetts, that appears to have been operating earlier in 1975.

The American Radio Relay League also issued a bicentennial WAS award to amateurs making contacts with all 50 U.S. states during 1976.

Here is a link to more bicentennial QSL’s

https://archive.org/details/ac-2-ghk-4-front

I wonder what’s going on this year, as I am not QRV at the moment?

73

Dan Greenall, VE3HLC

Alan Roe’s A-26 Season Guide to Music on Shortwave (version 3.0)

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Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor, Alan Roe, who shares his A-26 (version 3.0) season guide to music on shortwave. Alan provides this amazing resource as a free PDF download.

Click here to download Music on Shortwave A-26 v3.0 (PDF)

Alan has also created at-a-glance, single-page PDF programme grids for BBC World Service, CGTN Radio, Radio Romania International, Voice of Turkey, and Radio Taiwan International — all updated for the A-26 broadcast season. If you’d like to download these, visit Alan’s Box account here: http://tinyurl.com/shortwaveprograms

As always, thank you for sharing your excellent guide, Alan!

This dedicated page will always have the latest version of Alan’s guide available for download.

The GPS Numbers Station: Hidden Encrypted Messages in Plain Sight

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Image: NASA

Many thanks to SWLing Post contributor Scott Gamble, who writes:

Hi Thomas –

An interesting article was published in the most recent issue of Inside GNSS magazine that suggests that the US Military has been using an obscure field in GPS broadcasts to deliver encoded messages, potentially for use by intelligence agencies.

The article “The Empty Field That Wasn’t: GPS, OTAD, and Two Decades of Encrypted Messages,” by Steven J. Murdoch of University College London, is available via the link below:

https://lsc-pagepro.mydigitalpublication.com/publication/?i=865273&p=62&view=issueViewer

Scott