2007 National Hurrican Operations Plan

From the Office of the Federal Coordinator for Meteorology:

http://www.ofcm.gov/nhop/07/pdf/entire-nhop07.pdf

Interesting document with several references to communications. Here are a few highlites:

5.5.4.2.1. The 53 WRS shall only use the call sign "Teal ##," AOC shallonly use "NOAA ##," NASA shall only use "NASA ##," and NRL shall useonly Warlock587.ATC will provide TEAL and NOAA aircraft priority handling when specifically requested.

5.5.4.5.1. During NHOP missions, commencing 5 minutes prior torelease of dropsondes from FL190 or higher, the aircraft commander will broadcast in the blind on radio frequencies 121.5 MHZ and 243.0 MHZ to advise any traffic in thearea of the impending drop. Pilots shall not make these broadcasts if they will interfere with routine ATCcommunications, such as in the vicinity of an airport approach control facility. The aircraft commander is responsible for determining the content and duration of a broadcast, concerning a dropsonde release or sensor activation.

5.9.1. General. The 53 WRS WC-130 and NOAA WP-3D aircraft will normally transmit reconnaissance observations via the Air Force Satellite Communications System(AFSATCOM), commercial SATCOM or high frequency (HF) radio phone patch. Figures 5-12 and 5-13 depict the ASDL and AFSATCOM communications links. The NOAA G-IV will normally transmit WMO Temp Drop messages via commercial SATCOM. Flight meteorologists should contact CARCAH following the first fix, and periodically throughout the mission.
5.9.2. Air-to-Ground Communications (HF Radio). The weather reconnaissance crew may relay weather data via direct telephone patch to the weather data monitor. Monitors will evaluate these reports and disseminate them through the Air Force'sAutomated Weather Network (AWN) or to the weather communications facility at Suitland, Maryland. When requested, aeronautical stations will provide a discrete frequency for mission use, if possible. Specific radio procedures and terminology will comply with Allied Communications Publication 125, Standard Telephone and Radio Procedures. The use of IMMEDIATE precedence for transmission of hurricane reconnaissance data is authorized because of the perishable nature and potential operational impact of weather data. Data will be routed by direct phone patch between the aircraft and CARCAH.

5.9.3. Air-to-Air Communications. When more than one aircraft is known to be operating in a particular area of interest, the following frequencies will be used for airplane-to-airplane communications and coordination unless otherwise directed by air traffic control:• Primary: VHF 123.05 MHZ• Secondary: UHF 304.8 MHZ• Back-up: HF 4701 KHz USB

Definitely worth a look! Thanks to Robert Wyman for alerting me to this material!

415.2 Oddity In Memphis

Some strange happenings have been observed in the Memphis, Tennessee over the last couple of days. When I got in to town on Wednesday evening and started searching the federal bands, I came across a repeater on 415.2000 MHz that was keyed up all the time with a "beep-beep" about every 7 seconds. It was definitely coming from downtown Memphis, as I could get Close-Call hits from it and hear it without an antenna on the radio. This frequency is normally used by the Federal Protective Service in many cities and may still be used by General Services Administration maintenance operations in some areas.

On Thursday, while in Forrest City, Arkansas, the same constant-carrier with the "beep-beep" was heard on 409.3500 MHz while in that area. I was not able to determine where that repeater was located.

I actually sat and listened to the constant "beep-beep" signal on Saturday for a while. It appears that the repeater is still getting signals in to the input. I heard quite a few radio key-ups and actual voice transmissions, but it was like they were talking to someone that was never heard responding over the repeater. Most of the transmissions I did hear were maintenance related, i.e., getting doors unlocked, refrigerators not working, etc.. Again, I heard some units calling others, but would only hear one side of the conversation.

I know some repeater systems will transmit this "beep-beep" signal to indicate something needs attention, such as a commercial power failure, a control link failure or something along those lines. But what this means is a mystery to me!

New BoP System Info

In the quest to document and build a database of Bureau of Prisons radio systems, there have been some BoP facilites that we just don't have any information on. Some are located in rural areas that just may not have any listeners nearby. This is probably the case for the Federal Correctional Complex in Forrest City, Arkansas.

I happened to be in nearby Memphis, TN and made a side trip over to see what I could find about the FCC Forrest City's radio system. Here is what I found:

Federal Correctional Complex Forrest City

Motorola Type II SmartNet

System ID - a733

Base - 406.8125

Step - 12.5

Offset - 380

406.8125

407.0125

407.4125

408.2125

408.8125

409.6750

410.5250

The system is using P-25 digital voice and seems to be very busy.

This system information will be added to the Fed Files BoP Database that is available for download on the Monitoring Times website. It is in the "Readers Only" section of the site, and requires a password found in the latest issue of Monitoring Times magazine.

Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

The Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the San Francisco Bay area operates a multi-site UHF trunked system with sites all over. The system info was removed from the RadioReference web site at the request of the LLNL.

On a recent trip through San Francisco I found that there appears to be a site on this system located in or near downtown San Francisco. It is a Motorola Type II UHF system that is using P-25 voice. The system ID is 5434 and I found Site 6 to be coming in full strength with no antenna on the radio while I was at AT&T Park. Here is the site info:

406.1500 MHz - Control Channel, System 5434, Site 6

407.8625 MHz - Voice Channel

408.3875 MHz - Voice Channel

416.8625 MHz - Input to 407.8625

417.3875 MHz - Input to 408.3875

UPDATE: I have been informed that Site 6 of this system is in fact located at the Lawrence Berkley Lab, across the bay from San Francisco.

Hoover Dam

I had some spare time on a recent trip to Las Vegas, so we decided to take a trip out to the Hoover Dam and see what had changed in the last 10 years since I was there last.

As it turns out, quite a bit had changed. There is a fabulous new visitors center, a great parking ramp and the construction of the new bridge over the dam is quite impressive. But traffic still slows to a crawl well before you get to the dam, due mainly to the new security checkpoints that all vehicles must pass through.

Here is what I picked up on the scanner while at the dam:

163.1250, P-25 - Hoover Dam Police repeater

165.6000, P-25 - Hoover Dam Police input

166.3000

167.1500

169.8000, 173.8pl

170.0500

172.6000

Some of these frequencies are related to the Lake Mead National recreation Area. I also spotted a UHF omni and a UHF Yagi antenna mounted at the center of the dam, both pointed down towards the bottom of the dam. It might be that the dam operations are using UHF, but never found any active UHF frequencies while there.

Update At ORD

On my return trip through Chicago, I had more time to break out multiple scanners and try to figure out some of what I heard on my last trip.

First off, the 163.4750 MHz frequency does NOT appear to be the TSA on further listening. It is, in fact, the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement operations at the International Terminal at O'Hare Airport. However, it gets strange in that all the traffic on this repeater is also heard on another repeater on 163.7500 MHz, located somewhere nearby. These frequencies are quite busy with announcements as to incoming flights and baggage movement (thus my thinking it was TSA at first). I also heard one unit calling CHARLIE 100 about taking a subject under arrest to a holding cell. CHARLIE 100 is the Customs & Border Patrol National Law Enforcement Communications Center in the Orlando, FL area.

Next, I discovered the 165.8500 MHz frequency is actually the input to the ICE/CBP repeater on 163.6250 MHz, which does appear to be at ORD. I heard more than a few units switch between the 163.6250 and 163.4750 frequencies.

The 169.1625 MHz repeater does appear to be TSA, but have not confirmed the input. 172.1500 MHz is definitely in use by the TSA at ORD.

And finally, while searching, I got a couple of brief hits on 167.0375 MHz. I don't know who that might have been. All the frequencies listed in this blog entry were using APCO P-25 digital mode and un-encrypted.

New Dallas Frequencies

On a quick visit in the Dallas area, I discovered some new P-25 frequencies active in the downtown Dallas area. 406.6625 MHz (repeater) and 415.6625 MHz (input to 406.6625) appear to be a 24/7 security operation. Local sources are indicating that this is most likely the Federal Reserve Bank, located at 2200 North Pearl Street, a stone's throw from where I was staying.

New TSA Freqs Found???

While waiting for my delayed departure from Chicago's O'Hare Airport, I found what appears to be several new P-25 conventional frequencies in use by the TSA (Transportation Security Administration). This seems to continue the trend of the TSA showing up on new frequencies where they might have interference issues with another nearby commercial airport. Previously I had only heard the nationwide frequencies of 172.15 and 172.9 in use at ORD, but here's what is being used now:

163.4750, P-25 - Repeater that seems to carry a lot of informal traffic regarding baggage screening and personel assignments. I did not find the input to this repeater.

165.8500, P-25 - TSA operations, appears to be the input to a repeater on 169.1625 MHz.

169.1625, P-25 - TSA Operations at ORD. This frequency is also used by the TSA at DFW Airport in Grapevine, Texas.

172.1500, P-25 - TSA Simplex operations at ORD. This remains as one of the normal, nationwide TSA channels that is still in use at ORD.

While searching these out, I also came across a P-25 repeater on 163.6250 MHz, most likely an Immigrations and Customs Enforcement (ICE) repeater at ORD.

NASA JSC Shooting

News reports indicate a suspect fired two gun shots then barricaded himself in Building 44 at the Johnson Space Center campus in Houston, Texas. As of the time of this blog entry, the situation was still unfolding.

For those wondering about monitoring the situation at JSC, the best bet would be listening to the Houston police conventional UHF frequencies for any activity. The Johnson Space Center does have a UHF federal trunked system for all of it's radio communications, but at last check all the radios were using P-25 digital mode with encryption enabled full time.

For future reference:

NASA Johnson Space Center

Motorola Smart Zone

System ID B32C

406.2375 MHz
407.0375 MHz
407.2375 MHz
407.4375 MHz
407.6375 MHz
408.5500 MHz
409.5125 MHz
409.7125 MHz
409.9125 MHz

VAMC Pittsburgh Radio Updates

I've received some information about changes to the Pittsburgh VA Medical Center radio frequencies. It appears that they are in the process of moving frequencies around and are actually simulcasting on old and new frequencies at the same time.

Here's what is reported as active these days:

171.0125 - PL 103.5 - Transports

173.9375 - PL 103.5 - Transports

172.6875 - P25 - Police

169.0125 - P25 - Police

166.2500 - P25 - Police Input

171.2625 - PL 127.3 - Emergency

170.5875 - PL 127.3 - Emergency

169.5875 - PL 114.8 - Maintenance

171.1875 - PL 114.8 - Maintenance

163.2375 - Paging

New Low Profile Federal Radios

A few years ago I saw this request for information from the Department of Homeland Security regarding a "low profile", cell-phone look-alike radio:

http://www.cbd-net.com/index.php/search/show/575529

A recent posting on the "Batlabs" board indicates that Motorola has come out with just what DHS wanted, and they are calling it the XTS4000:

http://batboard.batlabs.com/viewtopic.php?p=313386&sid=1896dc86ad52bb7b6e99d3773ecc31f2

While there is some speculation that these were developed with the IWN trunked system in mind (since they will do P-25 VHF trunking), I would guess that any federal agency using VHF systems would be interested in a radio like this. This model covers VHF frequencies, but could a UHF version be in the works?

Some additional information on the radio can be found at these links to the FCC web site:

Photos:
https://gullfoss2.fcc.gov/prod/oet/forms/blobs/retrieve.cgi?attachment_id=738677&native_or_pdf=pdf

https://gullfoss2.fcc.gov/prod/oet/forms/blobs/retrieve.cgi?attachment_id=738678&native_or_pdf=pdf

Operator manual:
https://gullfoss2.fcc.gov/prod/oet/forms/blobs/retrieve.cgi?attachment_id=738680&native_or_pdf=pdf

https://gullfoss2.fcc.gov/prod/oet/forms/blobs/retrieve.cgi?attachment_id=738682&native_or_pdf=pdf

IWN Redux - It's Growing Again! UPDATED!

Reports are being posted on RadioReference.com that a new IWN site has shown up in the Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan area. It is broadcasting a P-25 control channel on 167.8125 MHz and is showing the IWN System ID of 715 with a tower number of 12015 (looks like they are expecting a lot of tower sites!). Here are some additional site frequencies as recently posted on RadioReference:

167.8125 - Primary Control Channel
167.9375 - Voice
168.1875 - Alternate Control Channel
170.9375 - Voice

This comes despite information in the recently released OIG report about the IWN Project. In that report it was stated that the next phase of the IWN deployment would be in the Southwest US:

http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/reports/OBD/a0725/final.pdf

The IWN has recently grown from the initial "testbed" system in Western Washington State down in to Northern Oregon and is expected to continue to grow as the project continues. Listeners in the Northeren Michigan area should keep an ear out for additional control channels and voice channels that go with them!

Los Angeles BoP MDC

For a while I have been seeking information on the Los Angeles Metropolitan Detention Center, operated by the US Bureau of Prisons. I just stumbled on several P-25 voice channels and a Motorola trunked control channel that I think may be located at the LA MDC in downtown Los Angeles.

I think I have picked up this control channel on my last visit to LA, but the frequency is also used by the Camp Pendelton UHF trunked system, and I may have ignored it.

Still working on more system information but here is what I have so far:

Motorola Type II

System ID - ca0b

406.8125 - P25 voice

409.4125 - P25 voice

409.9500 - Control channel

Fed Files Contest Winner!

Congratulations to David Stearns of Overland Park, Kansas. He won the drawing for an original copy of Monitoring Times, volume 1, #4. That issue of MT featured a front page story about the NTIA classifying the federal frequency Master File.

Thanks to everyone who entered the Fed Files drawing. We'll do it again when we come up with another prize!

CBP Border Patrol Update

After my recent trip to Arizona, I decided to dust off my listings for the DHS Customs & Border Protection Border Patrol. The Border Patrol continues to use its legacy VHF frequencies that are in blocks assigned to the Justice Department.

Currently the CBP Border Patrol doesn’t have a national channel plan like some agencies, but assigns their frequencies as needed locally. Along both the northern and southern border areas (except for southern California), the 163 MHz frequencies are the “backbone” repeaters with multiple input frequencies, from the 162 MHz, 165 MHz and 168 MHz blocks of frequencies. These frequencies can be used as repeaters or “local” simplex frequencies as well.

In areas not near the US borders, the former US Immigration agents, now part of DHS as the Immigration and Customs Enforcement may use frequencies from these blocks for local use.

162.8250
162.8500
162.8750
162.9000
162.9250
162.9500
162.9750

163.0500
163.1000
163.3750
163.5500
163.6000
163.6250
163.6500
163.6625
163.6750
163.7000
163.7250
163.7500
163.7750
163.8250
163.8875
163.9625

164.0500
164.5500

165.8000
165.8250
165.8500
165.8625
165.8750
165.9000
165.9250
165.9750

166.5875
166.8500

168.3500
168.8000
168.8250
168.8500
168.8625
168.8750
168.9000
168.9250
168.9500
168.9750

170.3500
170.6250
170.6750
170.7000
170.7250
170.7375
170.7500
170.7750
170.8250
171.3125
171.7250
172.5250
173.6875
173.7750

Besides the frequencies listed above, most CBP Border Patrol units have access to the national CBP Customs radio nets listed in a previous blog entry:

http://mt-fedfiles.blogspot.com/2006/06/dhs-cbp-channel-lineup.html

Phoenix Federal Scanning

Just finishing up a weeks work in the Phoenix, Arizona area and found quite a bit of federal activity. Despite the use of encrypted P-25 in southern California Border Patrol activity, southern Arizona remains a mix of analog and DES encryption.

163.6500 DHS CBP DES

163.7750 123.0 DHS CBP BORDER PATROL

164.6000 100.0 DHS CBP

165.2375 100.0 DHS CBP NET 1

165.6375 P-25 TRUNKED SYSTEM 534 SITE 107- PRIMARY CC

166.3250 ?

166.7000 P-25 TRUNKED SYSTEM 534 SITE 107- ALTERNATE CC

167.6250 127.3 TONTO NF?

167.8250 P-25

168.9750 100.0 DHS CBP BORDER PATROL

169.4000 CSQ REPEATER - USFS?

169.4500 100.0 DHS CBP - DES

171.7500 123.0

172.8250 P-25 FAA PHOENIX

173.6875 123.0 DHS CBP BORDER PATROL

173.7125 P-25 ? ENC

173.8375 P-25 UNKNOWN - KEYS UP WITH NO VOICE

411.6750 ?

418.9500 156.7 DEA F6

The trunked sites listed are part of the Phoenix Metro P-25 800 MHz Public Safety system. They've been on the air for a couple of years now, but I don't know if anyone has actually heard them used yet.

Justice IWN Update - The Next Move?

As I have been reporting both on the Fed Files blog and in the Fed Files column in Monitoring Times, the Justice Integrated Wireless Network or IWN continues to grow and progress towards it's goal of being a nationwide digital trunked system for federal agencies. However, a recent audit of the systems shows there are some troubles for the IWN Project:

http://www.usdoj.gov/oig/reports/OBD/a0725/final.pdf

The above link contains some interesting information about the project and its use by various agencies so far.

The IWN expanded it's coverage from Washington State down in to Oregon and the Portland metro area in late 2006. It now appears to be in full use by Portland area federal agencies. We've been monitoring a LOT of activity on the system in the last month or so, almost 24/7. Several talk-groups on the system are showing the majority of the activity, but since the radios have been set up with the encryption selected automaticaly, I haven't heard any clear transmissions since the radio techs finished with their installation tests. But remember - systems are not encrypted, talk groups are not encrypted, but it is the individual radios that are encrypted.

So where will the IWN show up next? Information in the above referenced audit report confirms that the southwest US is the next region to start the build out. I am currently in the Phoenix area (more on that in another blog entry) and have noted there is a P-25 control channel on 165.6375 MHz. It is part of the Phoenix area P-25 trunked system that allows federal VHF users to tie directly in to the 800 MHz system without patches.

Here is some budget information for the IWN project:

http://www.dhs.gov/xlibrary/assets/mgmt/e300-dhs-iwn2008.pdf

So keep a lookout for P-25 control channels showing up in the VHF federal band in your area!

NOAA UHF Weather Links

Some listeners may not know that the NOAA has some UHF frequencies that are used for "links" between the NOAA Weather Offices and the VHF weather transmitters that are located across the country. Sometimes, depending on the location of the NOAA offices, you can hear the weather broadcasts better on the UHF link frequency. And if the VHF Weather transmitter is off the air for some reason, you still might be able to catch the feed on the UHF frequency!

Here are some UHF frequencies that are allocated for use by the NOAA:

410.1000 - Weather Link
410.1750
410.4750
410.5500
410.5750 - Weather Link
410.6750
410.7250
410.8500
410.8750
412.3250
415.8500
415.9000 - Weather Link
416.3750 - Weather Link
416.9750 - Weather Link

I have noted where I have heard the NOAA weather being linked to VHF transmitter sites.
So if you have trouble hearing the normal VHF NOAA Weather frequencies, give the UHF federal band a search!

National Marine Fisheries Service

I received some frequencies that are reported to be used by the National Marine Fisheries Service, a division of NOAA:

http://www.nmfs.noaa.gov/

These are reported as being used in hand-held radios. I haven't confirmed these personally, but hope someone can!

NOAA NMFS Portlables

410.7000

410.7250

410.8750

410.9750

FBI Aircraft Call Signs

This past year we have seen reports of FBI aircraft operations using a new call sign. Previously the call sign of ROSS was used by aircraft being used in FBI operations. This call sign was used on the FAA air traffic control channels in order to identify them as a law enforcement aircraft to flight controllers. The ROSS call was followed by numbers, sometimes related to the aircraft FAA registration, or "N" number.

However, some have reported that the ROSS call has been replaced by the call sign JENNA. Some have reported the call pronounced with a long E, as "jean-ah", others have heard it as "gen-na", with a short E sound. Most recently JENNA 85 (N6317T) was heard landing at Paine Field in Everett, Washington.

I have also received reports that this new JENNA call sign is actually an addition to the ROSS call. The JENNA call is supposed to be used by non-FBI aircraft and non-FBI flight crews being used on FBI operations, where the ROSS call is still used for FBI owned aircraft with FBI flight crews.

As a possible related side note, I recently heard a "JENNA 01" on the ATC channels over Colorado or Utah. Where were they headed?

BTW, the original FAA document that had all the assigned federal aircraft call signs has been modified, and the table with the call signs has been eliminated;

http://www.faa.gov/ATPUBS/FSS/fss1401.htm

The document linked above used to have a table of assigned call signs for federal law enforcement and military aircraft for use while communicating with FAA air traffic control. I have a printed copy of the original document that contains the call sign table 14-1-51.

Anyone know anything more? Let us know at the Fed Files!