Radio Kahuzi (Democratic Republic of Congo): 2019-2020

Thanks to SRAA contributor Dan Robinson for these notes and audio of Radio Kahuzi

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Radio Kahuzi, a U.S.-funded religious station located in Bukavu, Democratic Republic of Congo has been heard by DX’ers in a number of countries since the mid-2000’s and had been in operation since the 1990s. It was founded by U.S. evangelist Richard McDonald and his wife Kathleen, and was most easily heard via Europe-based SDRs, signing off at anywhere between 1800 and 1830 UTC.

In 2019, the station began to be heard more frequently on its 6,210.20 khz frequency — but was impacted by frequent power outages in the national electricity company of the DRC. In 2020, Radio Kahuzi was still being heard by DX’ers using European SDR sites, with certain locations such as Switzerland, UK, and Sweden bringing the best signals. I did a number of comparison videos showing reception of Kahuzi at these various locations. Interestingly, propagation conditions were such that Kahuzi’s signal had a very rapid rise from about 1700 UTC through to its sign off time around 1800 to 1830 UTC, and was often mistaken by some listeners as a European pirate signal in the 48 meter band.

In February 2020, Richard McDonald reported that power had been increased from 500 to 750 watts with reception in Bukavu 1/4 to 1/2 stronger, adding that they hoped the 750 watt level could be maintained “unless problems develop.” He also said the station had just installed a new digital studio.

In April 2020, McDonald reported problems with lightning strikes in the area with intermittent power issues. McDonald noted that the station had been hoping to begin distance education as the COVID-19 situation was beginning to have impacts: “We are the only radio that can reach all the 8 territories and local schools.”

As of mid-May 2020, Radio Kahuzi remained off the air as DX’ers held out hope that Kahuzi would return to the air. In an email, Richard McDonald reported “complications” regarding the power schedule of the regional power company saying he was hoping RK can get back on the air “between 8 AM to 7 PM”. Here is one of the best recordings of Radio Kahuzi, which took place using the SDR site in Ticino, Switzerland — the station has a unique sign off, playing an instrumental version of a Bluegrass song.

Voice of Colombia (Studio Recording): April 1979

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Tom Gavaras, who shares the following recording and notes:

A studio recorded tape of the Voice of Colombia featuring “Colombia Today” with news, weather, listener letters, music and more.

Starting time: 0100 UTC

April, 1979

Radio Rwanda: 2007

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following recording and notes on Radio Rwanda

For decades, shortwave listeners were able to hear Rwanda, located in central/southern Africa via the Deutsche Welle relay site at Kigali, the capital. This article by Deutsche Welle itself told the long history of the station which went on the air in 1965 and off the air some 50 years later. SWLing Post also had this article on the closure. Here’s an excellent Wavescan piece. For those decades on the air, listeners the world over were able to hear DW, which provided a special QSL showing the Kigali site — it’s a card that is cherished in many a collection to this day. But in addition to the powerful DW voice from Kigali, Radio Rwanda was always a separate but equally sought after DX catch. The station broadcast on 6,055 khz and started at 10 kw, going up to 50 kw. Rwanda was also heard on the 90 meter frequency of 3,330 khz which was extremely difficult to hear given the interference from CHU, the Canadian time signal station, and other Latin American and African stations in that same frequency range. The QSL pictured above was for my reception of Radio Rwanda on 3,330 khz heard in Pennsylvania. At one point, I was vacationing in Boca Raton, Florida — using a Panasonic RF-B65 portable receiver on the beach just before 2000 UTC I was amazed to hear the following beautiful clear signal from Radio Rwanda on 6,055 khz.

Radio Confusion: October 20, 1980

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Andy Robins, who shares the following recording and notes:

North American pirate Radio Confusion recorded on 13.992 MHz (20-meter band) beginning at 0100 GMT on 20 October 1980 in Kalamazoo, Michigan. Unfortunately, the complete recording could not be recovered because of the poor physical condition of the original cassette tape. Radio Confusion was among the first North American pirates to routinely use frequencies above 7.5 MHz, as I recall.

Receiver: Collins R390A

Radio Lesotho: 1970s

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following recordings and notes on Radio Lesotho

Ranked in terms of difficulty, a few stations on shortwave from Africa topped the most challenging list. One was Radio Lesotho on 4,800 khz, a frequency that suffered from extreme interference from Latin American stations using the 60 meter band. But this small southern African country could nonetheless be heard in the evening on the east coast of North America and other locations at and just after its sign on. I was able to hear the station from Pennsylvania, using a Hammarlund HQ-180 receiver, but also had the opportunity to hear it like a local when I lived in Swaziland for 3 months in the 1970’s. Following is a recording made locally in Swaziland, and one recording made in Pennsylvania.

Radio Pax (Mozambique): 1974

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following recording and notes on Radio Pax

Though shortwave listeners around the world heard the main Radio Clube de Mozambique stations in what could be called the heart of the shortwave era — the 1960’s through the 1980s — another station also broadcast from the east African country. That was Radio Pax, the Catholic station in Beira, Mozambique, which dates back to 1954. Amazingly, Radio Pax still exists today complete with a Facebook page. But there is no longer any shortwave. In 1974, while living in southern Africa as an exchange student I had the thrill of being able to hear Radio Pax on 3,960 khz, one its two shortwave frequencies and made tis recording using a Drake SPR-4 receiver on a longwire located in Mbabane, Swaziland.

Radio Clube de Mozambique (Lorenzo Marques Radio): 1974

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following recording and notes on Radio Clube de Mozambique or LM Radio:

Through the 1960s and 1970’s, Mozambique was a prime target for shortwave listeners in the United States, Europe and elsewhere, with a number of regional stations based in various cities broadcasting on shortwave, as well as its main national station in the capital Lorenzo Marques. For some reason, not many recordings of Radio Mozambique exist today — this is perhaps because the station was such a challenge to hear on its 60 and 90 meter band frequencies. Latin American stations often interfered with Radio Club de Mocambique or LM Radio as it was known, though many DX’ers did succeed in hearing the station and obtaining cherished QSLs. Quite a few were able to hear and verify the more challenging regional stations in cities such as Beira, Quelimane, and Nampula — the capital of Lorenzo Marques was later changed to Maputo. Excellent articles about Radio Mozambique can be found here and here.

In 1974 I had the thrill of a lifetime, for a radio hobbyist that is, when I spent 3 months living in Swaziland, which is adjacent to the very southern tip of Mozambique as an AFS exchange student. I had brought a Drake SPR-4 with me and with a 100 foot longwire on a hill in Swaziland I was able to listen to a number of regional stations at local signal levels. One of them was LM Radio — I made this recording on one of the shortwave frequencies used by Mozambique at the time. You can hear the South African-influenced programming, including an ad for Marlboro cigarettes, and the station’s Portuguese ID at the end. According to the Wavescan article above, shortwave from Mozambique lasted into the early 2000s, at least according to listings. Another shortwave station from Mozambique, Catholic broadcaster Radio Pax, was also on the air and was an even more difficult catch for DX’ers.

Radio Uganda: 1979

There are other recordings of Radio Uganda on the archive — this is another, made in Washington, DC by famed DX’er Taylor McNeil. This was made on March 31, 1979 on 15,325 khz which was the frequency many listeners heard Uganda on, with 250 kw of power. Hearing Uganda on the 60 meter band, however, was far more challenging.

Many thanks to SRAA contributor Dan Robinson, who processed and posted this audio recording by Taylor McNeil:

WRNO: Early 1980s

WRNO was the U.S. shortwave station founded by Joseph Costello III as described here and went on the air in February 1982 as a commercial international broadcaster. Another recording can be found in the archive but this is one of the earliest recordings of the station after it first went on the air.

As described by Wikipedia, WRNO was the first privately owned shortwave station licensed in several years at the time of its approval by the FCC: “Before Costello's efforts, there were only three non-governmental American shortwave broadcasters on the air; by the end of the decade, that number had increased to sixteen.[2]  WRNO shortwave had a rock music format, branded as the "World Rock of New Orleans" and operating from noon to midnight (GMT-6) daily. Originally a separate broadcast from the FM station, eventually WRNO turned to simulcasting WRNO-FM, which also had a rock music format. During the early 1990s WRNO turned to leasing airtime to religious and political commentators (for a time, it was the shortwave home of Rush Limbaugh's program) until a damaged transmitter forced the station off the air for several years.” In 2001 the station was purchased by Good News World Outreach, a non-profit religious broadcaster.” This article in SWLing Post shows the transmitter of WRNO as of 2009.

A bit of shortwave trivia not widely known — Joseph Costello appeared in the first pilot of “Communications World” the VOA program for shortwave listeners originated by Dan Robinson, who went on to be a foreign correspondent, congressional reporter, and chief White House correspondent for VOA through the 1980’s, 1990s and 2000s.

Bizim Radio (Turkish Communist Party): 1970s

As detailed in this article, Bizim Radio was one of the oldest clandestine stations and represented the Turkish Communist Party (Bizim means “our” radio). Bizim Radio started broadcasting in 1958 and lasted until 1989 when it was reported that the station would close after more than 30 years in operation. Bizim Radio was one of many clandestines audible on the east coast of North America and was a regular along with Radio Espana Independiente, Radio Euzkadi, and other stations often using odd frequency ranges such as the 10 and 13 mHz bands.

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following recording

Emisora Regional dos Azores: 1970s

In the 1970’s shortwave listeners were surprised by the appearance in the 60 meter band of a station that seemed to be a re-activation of Portugal’s station in the Azores islands. The frequency was 4,865 khz and the signal was quite strong as heard on the east coast of North America. What everyone thought was actually a broadcast from the Azores turned out to be — NOT. According to Jerry Berg, in his On the Shortwaves 1945 to turned out to be none other than Radiodifusao Portuguesa with transmissions on the old frequency of Azores from years before. What a disappointment for country hunters! Anyway, here is a recording of what we all thought was Azores direct, made in the 1970s. You can hear the full ID by the announcer toward the end followed by the Portuguese national anthem.

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following recording

Radio Clandestine: 1980's

Radio Clandestine was one of the main U.S. pirates on shortwave in the 1970s and 1980s — this recording was made in Washington, DC on a Hammarlund HQ-180A. I do not recall the frequency. This recording includes the famous spoof of Radio Moscow…and sign off with the equally famous R.F. Burns. At another link here in the archives, Andy Robins provides a separate recording of Radio Clandestine recorded in 1980 and notes that the station was known for using frequencies inside the regular shortwave broadcasting bands, unlike other pirates that tended to use frequencies just above or below the 40-meter amateur radio band.

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following recording:

Radio Beijing (Tiananmen Protests): June 4, 1989

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Tom Gavaras, who shares the following recording and notes:

During the Tiananmen Protests in 1989, a courageous announcer at Radio Beijing went on the air with the following announcement:

“This is Radio Beijing. Please remember June the third, 1989. The most tragic event happened in the Chinese capital, Beijing. Thousands of people, most of them innocent civilians, were killed by fully armed soldiers when they forced their way into the city. Among the killed are our colleagues at Radio Beijing. The soldiers were riding on armored vehicles and used machine guns against thousands of local residents and students who tried to block their way. When the army convoys made a breakthrough, soldiers continued to spray their bullets indiscriminately at crowds in the street. Eyewitnesses say some armored vehicles [inaudible] foot soldiers who hesitated in front of the resisting civilians. Radio Beijing’s English department deeply mourns those who died in a tragic incident and appeals to all its listeners to join our protest for the gross violations of human rights and the most barbarous suppression of the people. Because of the abnormal situation here in Beijing, there is no other news that we could bring you. We sincerely ask for your understanding and thank you for joining us at this most tragic moment.”

The above announcement was followed by a regular newscast.

According to some sources, the announcer was apprehended by the authorities almost immediately and detained for several years where he was separated from his family and underwent extended reeducation campaign.

Broadcaster: Radio Beijing

Date of recording: 6/4/1989

Starting time: 0400 UTC

Frequency: 11695 kHz

Reception location: Minnetonka, MN

Receiver and antenna: ICOM R71A

La Voz de Alpha 66: January 20, 1988

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Andy Robins, who shares the following recording and comments:

La Voz de Alpha 66 recorded in Kalamazoo, Michigan, from 0206 hours to 0237 hours UTC on 20 January 1988 on 6,668 MHz. The clandestine station opposed the Cuban government of Fidel Castro. The transmitter was reportedly located in the Miami, Florida, area.

Receiver: Sony ICF-2020

Radio Liberacion SRRN: January 20, 1988

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Andy Robins, for the following recording and notes:

Radio Liberación-Sistema Radial de la Resistencia Nicaragüense recorded in Kalamazoo, Michigan, from 0240 hours to 0330 hours UTC on 20 January 1988 on frequency 5,929.3 kHz. The clandestine station opposed the Sandinista regime in Managua. The transmitter may have been in Honduras.

Receiver: Sony ICF-2010

Jolly Roger Radio: November 9, 1980

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Andy Robins, who shares the following recording and notes:

This is a recording of U.S. pirate radio station "Jolly Roger Radio" from my location in Kalamazoo, Michigan, beginning at 2300 UTC on 9 November 1980. At that time I was using a Collins R390A receiver and a random-length, end-fed wire antenna. The station was about the only U.S. pirate at that time that specialized in Bluegrass, folk, and Americana music. This was part of a marathon, multi-hour broadcast that led directly to the FCC "busting" the station and putting it off the air. It was revealed that Jolly Roger Radio operated from Bloomington, Indiana, with a transmitter power of around 50 watts.

Spanish Sahara (Radio Sahara): 1973

On the top-10 list of DX targets in the 1970s was Spanish Sahara, the broadcast service transmitting from Aaiun in what was then Spanish-ruled Sahara in West Africa. Verification cards and letters were sent to lucky listeners around the world who were able to hear the transmissions which were a mixture of local programs and material from the Spanish national radio. Frequencies on shortwave: 7,230 khz listed as 10 KW and 4,626 khz which was a SSB frequency listed a 5 kilowatts, described as a service for Aaiun and Villa Cisneros, now called Dakhla, about 330 miles south along the coast from Aaiun.

My reception of Radio Sahara was on a Hammarlund HQ-180 receiver, which due to its superb filtering and vernier tuning capability I used to hear numerous African stations. According to the QSL letter received from Radio Sahara, and signed by Amparo Martin, their programming was from “0645 to 01 horas” making this one of the few African stations with a very late (or early in the morning) sign on for listeners in the eastern U.S. (the other being Radio Gambia).

In this recording you hear music to about the 1 minute 10 mark, then station identification by a male announcer “Musica para ellos. Radio Sahara de la red de emisoras [network of stations] de Radio Nacional de Espana” and since Spain was still under the rule of dictator Francisco Franco at the time, this was heard after an military march: “Viva Franco, Viva el Sahara, Viva Espana” followed by what I believe was the Spanish national anthem.

Another frequency for Radio Sahara was 11,805 khz. In 1975, the station sent out a more traditional QSL card (see below). The history that followed saw Spain withdrawing troops from the region on January 12, 1976, and ending its presence in the territory February 26, 1976. Morocco immediately claimed sovereignty over the territory and for years a guerilla war dragged on (1975 to 1991) between the Polisario Front and Moroccan forces. This Wikipedia entry explains the complexities of the situation in what is today called a “partially recognized de facto sovereign state.”

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following recording

Voice of Kenya: Circa 1975

In the 1960’s and 1970’s, Africa was a treasure trove of stations broadcasting on shortwave. Prime time for listening was late afternoon (especially during the winter DX season) and the 0300 to 0700 UTC range. For stations in East Africa and the Indian Ocean, evening hours presented an ideal time but did not mean that these were easy catches. One evening in 1975, propagation conditions were such that listeners on the East coast of North America suddenly heard East African stations at what sounded like a local level. One of them was Voice of Kenya. The signal was so remarkable on 4,915 khz that it rivaled signals from some Latin American stations that were still on the air in the 0300 to 0400 UTC range. This was the National Service in Swahili. Other VOK frequencies were more challenging, such as the listed 41 meter band frequency and one in 31 meters. Even more difficult, was the 4885 frequency for the Kenyan port city of Mombasa. That station eluded many DX’ers and verifications of the Mombasa station are among the rarest from the continent of Africa. Here is Voice of Kenya as heard in Pennslvania in 1975:

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following recording

Emisora da Guine Portuguesa (Portuguese Guinea - Guinea Bissau): 1972

This was the classic aerogram style QSL received by many DX’ers who heard Emisora da Guinea (or Guine as it was spelled by the station) Portuguesa. One of the hardest DX catches for North American listeners, the station’s main frequency was, as this verification notes, 5,041 khz. But for a brief period in 1972, DX’ers were amazed to find that this rare African station was putting out a harmonic and being heard at strong levels on 5041 x 2 = 10,082 khz. Some of us were pinching ourselves to make sure we weren’t dreaming, but yes, this was Portuguese Guinea. What’s more, the station was actually one of the more consistent verifiers of reception reports, and sent out this beautiful folding QSL complete with fantastic local stamps.

You may notice that no mention is made by the station of its harmonic frequency that allowed so many of us to hear this small country in the west of Africa. Here’s the recording, Emisora da Guinea Bissau, made on a HQ-180 in Pennsylvania, on the frequency of 10,082 khz a harmonic of 5,041 khz, the station’s main frequency. You will hear in this recording a variety of other interesting sounds, including interference from a local amateur radio operator whose signal was coming in at 10 mHz, the sound of an old dial-up phone, and the clunk of the HQ-180’s selectivity switch as I changed bandwidths from time to time.

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following recording

Radio Zambia: 1973

Regardless of when one started in the radio listening hobby, we all like to look back at certain reception experiences — they bring back vivid memories, of what we were doing when we heard certain countries and stations, what the seasons were, even what the weather was like. For me, hearing Zambia for the first time is still one of those special memories. In the early 1970’s, I had graduated from my starter radios to a Hammarlund HQ-180 and a Drake SPR-4. These two receivers would stay with me for many years and brought me the bulk of countries are heard on shortwave.

In the 70’s some African countries actually had international services — aside from Radio RSA (South Africa) which had a well-known and powerful overseas broadcast structure, others included Mali, Zambia, Uganda, etc. One excellent article about broadcasting from Zambia can be found here. Zambia was always quite difficult to hear in its 60 meter band frequency 4,910 khz, but one day I was amazed when I heard — in the 16 meter band no less — what sounded like an African station in the middle of English news Indeed, it was “Radio Zambia, broadcasting from Lusaka” and “Zambia Broadcasting Services, this is the general service of Radio Zambia, broadcasting from Lusaka.” The frequency, as the QSL card above states, was 17,895 khz the 16 meter band, far from the lower frequencies I was used to focusing on for Africa. So, here is audio from that reception, on a HQ-180, in the winter of 1973.

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Dan Robinson, who shares the following recording