|
Vintage Amateur and Military Radio Amateur/military receivers and transmitters, morse, and any other related vintage comms equipment. |
|
Thread Tools |
12th Jun 2022, 9:39 am | #1 |
Heptode
Join Date: Feb 2022
Location: Leicestershire, UK.
Posts: 690
|
Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
Jobog1 set me thinking about the vast distances in Australia e.g. 3Km between two villages) Then I recalled watching many vintage TV programmes featuring the use of two way radio systems for use by public to make emergency calls to the flying doctor, children being taught over the airwaves etc.
To satisfy my interest further I would be grateful for any comments on my queries below:- 1. Was this "network"' licensed & if so did it have a name ? 2. Were specific frequencies allocated ? 3. What makes of equipment were used ? 4. Would I be right in assuming this system is still in use in low density / population area's where mobile phones & internet may not be viable. Thanks, Rog |
12th Jun 2022, 11:24 am | #2 |
Heptode
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Southeast Norfolk, UK.
Posts: 773
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
Hi Roger,
There's a 50s period video on the school of the air radio service here:- https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-06-...s-70/100196222 In that clip, all the children listening are asked to speak all at once and judging by the mass of heterodynes the service must have used AM. I believe the receiver shown is an AWA set? Interesting topic! Cheers Roger |
12th Jun 2022, 11:40 am | #3 |
Octode
Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Carmel, Llannerchymedd, Anglesey, UK.
Posts: 1,509
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
From memory, the sets were HF and designed to load into a random wire. Tuning/loading being achieved by observing the brilliance of a small bulb. They were essential on remote cattle/sheep stations to call the flying doctor in an emergency. That was donkey's years ago - possibly they use sat phones these days.
|
12th Jun 2022, 11:50 am | #4 | |
Heptode
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Southeast Norfolk, UK.
Posts: 773
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
Quote:
|
|
12th Jun 2022, 12:03 pm | #5 |
Moderator
Join Date: Mar 2012
Location: Fife, Scotland, UK.
Posts: 22,894
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
At a radio rally some years ago I picked up a Racal 'Javelin' HF SSB transceiver that I understood had been developed in Canada for this sort of service. It had extensive CPU monitoring and looked like it did automatic link establishment etc. It could interface with a landline style phone and there was an RS232 port which I think was for data using an internal modem. Probably rather low data rate, but a vast improvement on nothing.
It used the Rafuse mixer and looked like it covered 2-30MHz. 100W and built for continuous duty. So transceivers targeting this sort of market are relatively recent David
__________________
Can't afford the volcanic island yet, but the plans for my monorail and the goons' uniforms are done |
12th Jun 2022, 12:50 pm | #6 |
Nonode
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Tintinara, South Australia, Australia
Posts: 2,340
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
You have School of the Air which used to use HF radio and now uses satellite internet.
There is also The Royal Flying Doctor Service which uses a combination of RF and satellite. See https://www.flyingdoctor.org.au/qld/...ack-its-voice/ for a history of that service - those radios were also used for School of the Air services. And this is the Outback Travellers Radio Service for which you do have to be licensed https://vks737.radio/ Oh, and it is more like hundreds of km between "villages", not 3km |
12th Jun 2022, 3:40 pm | #7 | |
Nonode
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Gloucester, Glos. UK.
Posts: 2,150
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
Quote:
Im sure a satellite phone would be an option in an emergency as a PAYG but noone seems to use them?
__________________
Oh I've had that for years dear!! |
|
12th Jun 2022, 7:35 pm | #8 | |
Heptode
Join Date: Feb 2022
Location: Leicestershire, UK.
Posts: 690
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
Quote:
Anyway, some really interesting replies so thanks guys. Rog |
|
12th Jun 2022, 11:17 pm | #9 |
Banned
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Mareeba, North Queensland, Australia
Posts: 2,704
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
NO !!! I quoted 3000 kilometres. and that was from nsw to qld. I was being a smarty saying it that way as I see quite often here that people in GB dont like travelling more than a couple hundred kliks, and that requiring weeks of planning . I do know, even with your "superhighways " you have massive traffic snarls, whereas I can drive for a day and not pass another vehicle, which probably doesnt help you.
AWA did make a lot of radio equipment for the RFDS and school of the air. I dont have an electric wireless anymore, but the one frequency I do remember is 2.102 megs AM. It was still running 20 years ago when as part of a new solar install in the bush we included 2 six metre lengths of aluminium pipe joined together, and a "magic balun " so that people could still chatter on the wireless. It was the general chat frequency, but there were other dedicated frequencies for emergencies. I have forgotten them. The internet is a major joke in Australia. It comes in many forms. Satelite, which is expensive and slow. Broadband WiFi, wire to to the premises, fibre to the premises and still some co-ax to premises in some locations. If you are going to travel deep into the bush a satelite phone is a must. They dont even cost that much anymore. The phone calls cost would break the bank of Monte Carlo!!!!. Most people that do a bit of travelling have CB in their cars. UHF for chatting or asking the truck in front to hold one lane while you overtake, ( It can be four, forty foot long trailers ) and 27 megs HF for long distance. That in itself is pretty useless, as it will go a long way. Usually South America, or Indonesian fishermen that flog every channel to death. There is still a fair amount of amateur radio too. I do know there is a few 2 metre translaters on top of hills following the major highways. You will quite often see a car drive past, looking like a porki pine with antennas of all heights poking out at all angles. Police cars have a dedicated system with big chunky HF antennas screwed to the bullbar. I dont know anything about them at all. There are quite a few interesting things on youtube to watch if you google RFDS and School of the Air. They will have additional links that will waste hours of time if your interested. Joe |
13th Jun 2022, 3:41 pm | #10 |
Heptode
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Tonbridge, Kent, UK.
Posts: 686
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
When I worked in the outback in the late 70s/early 80s the RFDS service was HF SSB on particular spot frequencies. There was a two tone alarm calling system. Many companies made suitable kit, we used Stingray and Codan, both mobiles. Codan did a nifty portable set commonly called the lunch-box, built in ATU for random bits of wire. Hook it up to a 12v battery and away you went. 30 watts from memory. We used them extensively in the jungle on PNG (Papua New Guinea).
The school on the air was also HF SSB, great fun listening to the kids singing a song, they of course had no feedback so the timing was all to pot after the first few words. And yes, everything was licenced and often shared. We, in the nominal south shared a frequency with Thursday Island way up north and had to agree to hold our scheds at different times. I seem to remember most of the time everything was around 5 MHz. Gordon VH5YA as was. |
13th Jun 2022, 7:18 pm | #11 |
Nonode
Join Date: Jun 2010
Location: Spalding, Peterborough, Cambridgeshire, UK.
Posts: 2,859
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
I remember, maybe 8 or10 years ago seeing an article about an outback farm transceiver, which I think was made by Pye? It was istr a valve set.
I have looked for the information since without success. Rob
__________________
Apprehension creeping like a tube train up your spine - Cymbaline. Film More soundtrack - Pink Floyd |
13th Jun 2022, 9:46 pm | #12 |
Hexode
Join Date: Jul 2007
Location: Edinburgh, UK.
Posts: 344
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
"Outback" radio has all come a very long way since the invention of the pedal operated radio of the 1930's see.
Alfred Traeger - Wikipediahttps://en.wikipedia.org › wiki › Alfred_Traeger |
13th Jun 2022, 10:49 pm | #13 |
Heptode
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: Tonbridge, Kent, UK.
Posts: 686
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
Codan 6924 "lunch box". Mic and power lead in the compartment on the left. It could be configured for any two of USB, LSB or AM.
|
14th Jun 2022, 6:03 pm | #14 |
Dekatron
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Wiltshire, UK.
Posts: 14,005
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
Codan stuff occasionally turns up here in the UK; it seems to sell cheaply, probably because of the cost of crystals to put it onto 80 Metres!
[I was prepared to pay for crystalls for my AEL3030 because it only took one crystal per channel, and it gives a sensible 150 Watts of SSB]. "Spilsbury" in Canada did a bunch of radios for remote logging-communities; I wonder if there was any sort of attempt to market their gear in Oz? I've got a Spilsbury STA270 'stinger' 3-to-5MHz mobile/helicopter-mountable whip antenna here - only 3 Metres long but it works OK.
__________________
I'm the Operator of my Pocket Calculator. -Kraftwerk. |
15th Jun 2022, 12:37 am | #15 |
Nonode
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Tintinara, South Australia, Australia
Posts: 2,340
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
Treager, Codan and another NZ company I can't recall the name of at the moment had Australia fairly well tied up in that respect - Treager and Codan are still going.
There were others, but not with such a big market share. |
15th Jun 2022, 10:42 am | #16 |
Triode
Join Date: Mar 2015
Location: Nottingham, Notts. UK.
Posts: 19
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
Here's a Australian set from my collection ,setup for 160m 80m and 60m
|
15th Jun 2022, 1:23 pm | #17 | ||
Pentode
Join Date: Oct 2006
Location: Brackley Northamptonshire, UK.
Posts: 240
|
Re: Public 2 Way Radio In Australia
Quote:
On one of my visits we decided to both go prospecting but whilst he had a Radio to call the Flying Doctor it wasn't working. After giving the radio some TLC and making up leads and a collapsible dipole I gave a call to the Flying Doctor. It was only seconds before receiving a reply. I felt a bit better knowing we could call someone if needed. Denis
__________________
If you take something apart often enough, eventually you'll have two of them.... |
||