Trans World Radio - PJB Bonaire June 30, 1993

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Timothy Land, who shares the following recording of the final broadcast of PJB/Trans World Radio in Bonaire. Timothy included the following notes:

Date of recording: 6/30/1993

Starting time: Approximately 00:00 UTC

Frequency: 9.535 MHz

Reception location: Kingsport, Tennessee, USA

Receiver and antenna: Magnavox AE3805 with telescoping antenna

Radio Australia (International Report): June 15, 1993

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

This is the way I remember Radio Australia.

Their signal used to boom into Eastern North America in the late evenings on 17715 and 17795 kHz with a reliable signal during the summer months. This program called International Report was one of my favorites.

Unfortunately I did not record the date and time when I made this recording. But judging from the content is must have been sometime in mid-June 1993. I was probably using my Sony ICF-2001. This program was likely aired around 1200 UTC as this was announced as the Southeast and North Asia Service on 21745, 6080, or 9710 kHz.

CHU Canada (Time Station): July 1993

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Bruce Atchison, for sharing the following recording and notes:

This first [recording in a series I’m sharing] is of CHU Canada. I recorded it in July of 1993 on 7,335 kHz with my Kenwood TS-690S transceiver:

Radio Cook Islands (Recording #1 Mediumwave): circa 1993

A view from the driveway entrance to the Radio Cook Islands studio in 1993. Insulators on an antenna (T2FD or multiband dipole) can be seen as dark spots against the cloudy sky. A feedline is also seen rising above the left side of the building. (Photo: Guy Atkins)

SRAA contributor, Guy Atkins, writes:

In 1993 I was fortunate to have the opportunity to visit Rarotonga with my wife, courtesy of a nice award through my company which afforded me an all-expenses-paid trip anywhere we’d like to go.

I chose the South Pacific island of Rarotonga, partly because I wanted to visit Radio Cook Islands after listening to their “island music” on 11760 and 15170 kHz through my teenage years.

During our visit to the island I recorded 90+ minutes of RCI on 630 kHz with a local quality signal using a Grundig Satellit 500 and a Marantz PMD-221 recorder.

Sadly, RCI will likely never be on shortwave again; a fire in the local tele-comm building a few months before my 1993 visit destroyed RCI’s transmitter. I had an amusing exchange with the secretary when I visited; she insisted that their station was still on shortwave. Of COURSE we’re on the air she said, because “the frequencies are published right here in the newspaper!” The engineer and announcer confirmed, though, that the silence on their former frequencies was for real. They indicated they were covering the outer islands just fine with FM translators and had no intention of restarting shortwave.

Recordings

The programming of Radio Cook Islands is bilingual, and announcers are fluent in both English and Cook Islands Maori. Music selections on RCI encompass all styles, to appeal to many age groups. These recordings was scheduled to include as much local music as possible.

RCI programming includes all the hallmarks of a small, non-professional station: stuck records & tape carts, dead air, poor modulation, and other miscues.

However, that’s part of the flavor of local radio, and these errors are heard throughout this recording. Particularly noticeable is the bassy, over-modulation of the studio announcer during sign-on announcements.

Recording 1

Notes: National anthem & hymn; sign-on announcements & music.
Music; weather; sign-off announcements & national anthem.
Local & regional news; weather; ads; music.

Recording 2 follows in the next post....