Tropical Radio Telegraph Company (Point To Point): Panama City, Managua, and La Lima

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Dan Greenal, who shares the following recordings and notes:

Notes: With roots over 100 years old, the Tropical Radio Telegraph Company (a subsidiary of the United Fruit Company) used to operate a few radiotelephone stations in Central America during the years prior to the Internet. They often could be heard on various shortwave frequencies transmitting a repeating test message so the receiving station could tune them in. I managed to pick up 4 of their stations in the early 1970's. These recordings are from La Lima, Honduras; Managua Nicaragua; and Panama City, Panama. I have not been able to find the one from Tegucigalpa, Honduras, but maybe it will surface later.

Broadcaster: Tropical Radio Telegraph Company (point to point)

Date of recording: unknown

Starting time: unknown

Frequency: various

RX location: Ancaster, Ontario, Canada

Receiver and antenna: Hallicrafters S-52 using a longwire antenna

Mode: Single Side Band

Sydney To Hobart Yacht Race HF Recording: December 28, 1998

Many thanks to SRAA contributor, Neil Howard, for sharing the following recording and notes:

The Sydney to Hobart Yacht race of 1998 was tragic as huge seas & storms decimated the fleet, leaving 6 people dead and 5 boats sunk.
 

HOW this was obtained
 

This recording of the SSB HF transmissions from 1998 was recorded by me from Queensland, using a newfangled unattended recoding program on the PC and a very ordinary Sangean ATS-803a receiver using a random long wire Antenna - from memory this was on the 8 Mhz Marine band, and is the co-ordination of the search and rescue from the 28th Dec 1998 and covers from around 8:30PM till 10PM - The automated recorded stopped recording when the signal noise dropped below a certain level and thus some was lost.
The recording goes for 30 mins, as that was the limit that was set to save disk space, but there is a lot of empty noise.

I present this recording as it was recorded, warts and all for your education *** I dedicate this to those lost at sea ****

HIGHLIGHTS
(Times are approximate)
4:11 "Rescue 253" 9A helicopter) locates a life-raft
6:00 "Air force Sydney" is looking for a position of a yacht " Solo Global Challenge"
6:50 "RCC Canberra" (Who is co-ordinating) has a "hot mic" and is explaining the situation to someone locally
8:35 "Rescue 253" has sighted 2 POB on the life-raft - RTC wants to know if they are from "Winston Churchill"
9:39 Another "hot mic" in Canberra
11:56 "Tiger75" (A Navy Helicopter, I think) has the survivors on board, but still awaiting info on who they are
13:04 13:44 confirmation that there are 2 survivors of the "Winston Churchill" from the life raft, but the tragic news that 3 others had "rolled out" of the raft and are lost (Historical note- these three were listed as drowned)
14:46 Discussion about where the survivors are to be taken by Tiger 75
15:20 Info of the survivors is passed though, along with the news that the life raft they were "in" had no bottom.
16:33 Rescue 253 Says it has heard a beacon & is proceeding to the location
20:00 Another aircraft has gone to the search site from Merimbula (A town in New South Wales)
25:38 Rescue 253 updates beacon location
26;30 Rescue 253 Locates a boat at the beacon site that has been dis-masted & is in serious trouble.