Category: Communications & Receivers

Hugh, Mr. TV asked if government agencies monitored some frequencies 24/7. I am an Army Aviator and can tell you that 121.5 VHF is monitored by every aircraft in the U.S. (not just military). The VHF radios in aircraft are designed to automatically receive 121.5, and it will broadcast into the ears of the pilot regardless of currently tuned frequency. Example: I have a tower freq tuned (119.325) and if someone broadcasts over 121.5, I will hear it, but in order to respond, I would have to tune my own radio to 121.5. The same is true for aircraft with …

Hugh, Reading H.R.’s correction on the Covert Communication article I must correct him. He cites 146.00MHz as the National Calling Frequency. That is incorrect. The generally agreed upon simplex frequency (there is no law or regulation requiring the use of any frequency as a National Calling Frequency) for calling others known and/or unknown is 146.52MHz. Do a Google search for “amateur radio national simplex frequency” and navigate to any of the top five or ten citations and you will find that 146.52 is listed in each as the 2 meter national simplex frequency. (There are many National Simplex Frequencies on …

HI, I just read the article on SOTA by Banjo Ninja. I see a lot of parallels with my own journey, and have had my FCC general license for a little over two years now. BN mentioned Field Day being a once-a-year event. It is coming up THIS WEEKEND (June 28/29)! I would encourage anyone who is even a little curious to find a local club who will be participating. The club I belong to, Huber Heights Amateur Radio Club, will be operating a “Get On The Air” (GOTA) station where visitors can try to make radio contacts with the …

Dear Hugh, I wanted to take a minute to put this out. If you have an old 12vdc power plug from say any old unwanted device you can make a power source for your CB. I did this in my all wheel drive car. It took all of 20 minutes, just plug it in while the car is on and it works. You can pop a magnetic antenna on the roof and you’re in business. Finish the CB chassis install using two screws to hold the radio to wherever you want to mount it, and another two for the mic. …

This article was very informative, well written and pulled it all together for the reader. Good job! Radio communications has been a prepping priority for me from the days when the LAPD could be heard at the top end of the standard AM broadcast band by detuning the radio and scanners were just a dream. That aside, a recent experience of mine regarding the Plain Old telephone (POT) mentioned by D.C. might save some SurvivalBlog readers a few headaches. A POT has always been a prepping priority for me. I’ll try to keep the story brief without sacrificing detail. About …

In a post-disaster scenario, good information will equate to life, while bad information or a lack of information could lead to death. I have recently been discussing the issue of post-disaster information gathering with many Christian/Patriot/Prepper friends of mine. We came to the consensus that while information on this specific topic is widely available, it is scattered around in different places, and we have not seen one definitive source that covers all the bases of effective information gathering. It is my intention to write this article in a way that a person that is anywhere on their prepper journey may …

Dear Hugh, I am surprised that you did not touch on the tactics used by the Russians in the recent annex of Crimea. One of the first things the Russians shut down was the local Internet and cell phone communication. They were able to isolate the area from communications in and out. I thought CB and Ham radios were a thing of the past, but after seeing what happened in the Ukraine I am looking to set up a base CB in my home and a mobile in my Jeep. For Jeep owners, there are numerous after-market CB kits available …

Thinking about volunteering your time with your County Department of Emergency Management? You may have to leave your concealed carry weapon at home! As a fairly new licensed Ham Radio Operator, I thought it would be great to volunteer and become a member of the local Amateur Radio Emergency Services (ARES) organization. I submitted an application for membership and completed the required FEMA on-line courses. I received a packet in the mail that contained additional forms that needed to be submitted. One of the forms was a County Department of Emergency Management Emergency Worker Registration Form. The second item on …

Hugh, I have switched from Google to Startpage.com as my search engine to gain some privacy on the web. Is there anyone providing an email service that would get me away from the eyes of gmail? I am sure most of your readers would appreciate the same information if you know of any resources. Hugh Replies: Currently, one of the best places you can start with is https://prism-break.org. They list services and programs that are open-sourced and free from spying eyes. They will also tell you the weaknesses of any as they become known. It didn’t take them long at …