New Federal Bay Area VHF Trunking?

Reports have been posted on Radio Reference about a new VHF trunking control channel being heard in the San Francisco Bay area of Northern California. Best guesses are that the control channel is coming from Mt. Tamalpais, a popular radio repeater site. 

Here is the system information so far:

173.7875 MHz
P-25 Phase 2
System ID: 4D5
RFSS: 003
Site ID: 067
WACN: BEE00

The system is now in their database:

https://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?sid=10459 

Since no traffic or talk groups have yet been seen active,  the system may or may not be actually using P-25 Phase 2 voice.  

Speculation abounds as to who this system is being built for. One poster mentioned he had knowledge of a "new federal system for Bay area coverage", but no speculation on agency or agencies.

Super Bowl 53 Updates

Once again I am at Super Bowl LIII in Atlanta, Georgia. I will post some limited updates on federal activity here, but nothing on active operations during the events.

I can confirm a few things that haven't been updated in a while. For some time there was a UHF trunked system in the Atlanta area that was used and manged by the Federal Protective Service, and had leased space used by the various military bases around Atlanta. This system is  no longer on the air, but FPS is using 410.8000 MHz, N201 for conventional operations. I've also heard the FPS on  409.2625 MHz, N201 and 413.9500 MHz, N210.The military bases have moved over to a 380 MHz trunked system,  https://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?sid=7895

I'm hearing the Federal Interoperability repeater on 170.4750, N653 is in operation.

168.8375, N293, CBP AIR 1, was busy with traffic about checking a live video downlink.

Tonight I found a multi-site P25 Phase II UHF trunked system. It shares the same system ID as the Department of Veterans Affairs system in the Orlando and Miami areas. Might be networked with Florida:

System ID             : 3CD
System Name           : SOUTHEASTERN US VA MEDICAL CENTERS
WACN                  : BEE00
Tower Number (Decimal): 1-41
Tower Number (Hex)    : T0129
Tower Description     : 1-41 ATLANTA
Control Capabilities  : Data,Voice,Registration
Flavor                : Phase 2

-Frequencies
#Format: Channel,Usage,Frequency(/Slot),Input Channel,Input Frequency(/Slot),Input Explicit(1/0),Hit Count
"07-0009","c",406.11250,"07-0009",415.11250,0,0
"07-0145","a",407.81250,"07-0145",416.81250,0,0
"07-0264","a",409.30000,"07-0264",418.30000,0,0
"07-0323","a",410.03750,"07-0323",410.03750,1,0

-Neighbors
#Format: TowerID,TowerIDHex,System ID,Channel,Frequency,Tower Name
101,"T0101",3cd,"02-0532",386.65000,""
142,"T012A",3cd,"07-0062",406.77500,""
143,"T012B",3cd,"07-0227",408.83750,""
144,"T012C",3cd,"07-0227",408.83750,""

I'll update this posting as more becomes available...

New Email Address

I have started using a new email address for communications related to the magazine column and other federal monitoring. You can email me at this address:

Tournament of Roses Parade

For the first time in a while I will not be working on the television coverage of the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, California this year. This event has always had a fair amount of federal monitoring activity relate to it, as it was a large public gathering. So I decided to compile a listing of the federal frequencies I've logged over the years for this event.

2018

162.8250         N107               Unknown, radio ID 605xxxx

162.8500         N243               Input to WA-4, CBP Border Patrol, radio ID 520xxxx

162.9875         N293               Jet Propulsion Labs Fire Response

163.1125         N169               ICE, radio ID 605xxxx

163.1375         N293               Coast Guard NET 113

163.5000         N310               Unknown, possible CBP aircraft, mentioned the view of the B2 flyover

163.7500         N109               ICE, radio ID 605xxxx

163.8375         N167               FBI

163.8625         N167               FBI, input to 167.5375 MHz repeater

163.9125         N167               FBI

164.4000         N001               US Secret Service PAPA, radio ID 802xxxx

165.8250         N108               ICE A-4, radio ID 605xxxx

166.7500         N455               BLM Law Enforcement

166.8875         N293               ICE, radio ID 605xxxx

166.9125         N245               WA-4 CBP Border Patrol, radio ID 524xxxx           

167.4625         N167               FBI A-5

167.5375         N167               FBI/USMS Interoperability repeater

167.6625         N167               FBI A-7

167.7000         N521               Unknown

168.5000         N199               Border Patrol

168.8250         N104               ICE LA-1, radio ID 605xxxx

168.8375         N293               CBP AIR 1, communications between the CBP aircraft

169.9125         N310               Unknown

170.7500         N293               US Marshals Service Federal Courthouse

171.3250         N820               CBP Marine Common, radio ID 522xxxx

172.2125         N187               Border Patrol, radio ID 605xxxx, 606xxxx

172.7125         N820               CBP Marin Common, radio ID 516xxxx

173.1000         N293               Unknown

173.9750         N191               Border Patrol

2017 

118.5750         AM                  Air Operations over Rose Parade/Rose Bowl

162.8875         N653

162.9875         N293

163.1125         N769

163.1375         N293

163.7000         N164               ICE

163.7000         N169               ICE

163.8250         N111

163.8375         N167               FBI

163.9125         N167               FBI

164.7875         N169               ICE

164.8750         131.8 PL

165.8250         N108               ICE

166.7500         N455

166.9125         N245

167.1625         N650               BATFE

167.2875         N167               FBI

167.3125         N167               FBI

167.3375         N167               FBI

167.4500         N301               CBP

167.4625         N167               FBI

167.6625         N167               FBI

167.7375         N167               FBI

168.8250         N104

168.9625         N293               CBP AIR 2 – OMAHA helicopter    

169.9125        

172.1875         N167               FBI

172.4125         N653               LA Federal Interoperability 2

172.7125         N820               CBP Marine Common System

173.1000         N293  

284.7000         AM                 B2 Flyby with LA Center

341.7500         AM                 B2 Flyby Air to Air and coordination timing with ground controller

351.9000         AM                 B2 Flyby with LA Center

2016

118.5750         AM                  Pasadena air traffic around parade route

162.9875         N293               NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory Fire Dispatch

163.7250         N169               Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)

163.9125         N167               FBI, probable input to 167.4625 repeater

166.9125         N245               CBP Wide-Area repeater, Santiago Peak

167.4625         N167               FBI Los Angeles, A-5 repeater

167.6625         N167               FBI Los Angeles

168.8375         N293               CBP Air 1

168.8500         N110               ICE, on location at parade

170.8000         N293               US Marshals

171.0000         N293               NASA JPL Security

172.3750         103.5 PL         Angeline National Forest

   The parade kicked off with an exciting flyover of a B-2 stealth bomber, call sign SPIRIT 11. There were actually two of the B-2 bombers in the area, but only one flew over the parade route to kick things off, then they went out and refueled with a tanker (GUCCI 61). Later, they came back around for the national anthem at the Rose Bowl football game later in the afternoon, and SPIRIT 12 did that flyover.  I was unable to catch the B2 via radio on the way into and out of the parade. But local military monitors were able to track the flight on VHF and UHF air traffic control channels across Southern California. Here are some frequencies they used as posted on the So Cal Military Monitoring Yahoo group:

124.55

124.6

128.375

132.5

263.0

317.7

351.675

2015

118.5750         AM                  Air coordination with media, IDAHO and OMAHA

163.8375         N167               FBI

163.9125         N167               FBI simplex

167.2375         N293               FBI repeater

167.5375         N167               FBI simplex

167.5625         N167               FBI simplex

167.7375         N167               FBI repeater

168.6000         Various PL      simplex

169.4500         100.0 PL         CBP OMAHA aircraft

172.7125         N820               CBP “Marine Common System” (MCS)

   The frequency of 163.9125 MHz appeared to be the primary operating frequency for the FBI units that were at the parade command center. It was the most active frequency on New Years Day. 167.2375 MHz became active during the parade and continued to be busy afterwards as well. Whatever agency was using 168.6000 MHz appeared to be trying this frequency with multiple channels on their radio looking for one that worked. I caught multiple key-ups, each showing a different CTCSS tone squelch. They finally settled on 103.5 PL for their operation. I suspect that it might have been US Forest Service units from the Angeles National Forest, as I heard them on their radio system mention they were coming into Pasadena to support parade operations.

   After the Rose Parade was done, activities continued for the federal agency support at the Rose Bowl football game later on New Years Day. The CBP OMAHA helicopter continued to provide airspace surveillance and I still heard some occasional traffic from the FBI on location and heard them chatting as they left the area after the game was over.

TSA Moving to UHF Channels?

A recent posting in the Federal Business Opportunities website, https://www.fbo.gov/index?s=opportunity&mode=form&id=25449a5f51bc288d1209e4bdb8be0281&tab=core&_cview=1
was sent to my attention.

It appears from the description that the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is interested in changing out all of their radio equipment from VHF to UHF frequencies. The TSA has just recently gone through an agency-wide upgrade of their VHF radio infrastructure that included new BK radios and equipment. The information provided by the TSA includes this data on thier radio systems:

At the present time, TSA operates approximately 155 repeaters at approximately 150 airports, approximately 120 base stations at approximately at 120 airports, and over 21,000 handheld radios at approximately 415 airports located in the United States of America and its territories. TSA also has Bi-directional amplifier (BDA) and Distributed Antenna Systems (DAS) systems installed at approximately 10 airports. Currently TSA manually encrypts its handheld radios and base stations monthly.

Several folks have inquired as to why they are moving. One suggestion is that the FAA, who shares many of the TSA frequency allocations, was wanting the VHF channels back. I also think that there are more available channels in the federal UHF band (406-420 MHz) than there are in the VHF (162 - 174 MHz) band.

US Park Police in DC Move to P25 Finally

It appears from postings on the Scan-DC mail list that the venerable US Park Police analog radio system may have finally met it's demise.

For some time the Park Police in Washington DC have been using analog FM for their radio transmissions. They have continued to use analog radios long after nearly every other federal agency in the DC region has moved to various forms of digital radios. The analog Park Police frequencies also have long history of being heard over quite an large area around the DC area, and could often be heard into the Philadelphia and even New York City on some occasions.

The new, encrypted, P25 digital frequency lineup for the Park Police will include the following:

168.7875 - ADMIN
169.7000 - SPECIAL EVENTS
171.7750 - DISPATCH

No information yet on P-25 NAC or radio IDs for the Park Police. 

Special thanks to the Capitol Hill Monitor newsletter for keeping up with new developments on this:

http://henney.com/chm/chm.htm

New Federal Trunking in DC?

Over last weekend I noticed reports on Radio Reference of a new VHF trunking control channel being heard in Virginia around the Washington DC area.

The frequency of 173.1750 MHz was reported as having a P-25 control channel with a system ID of 981, Site 101 and a WACN of BEE00.  DSD+ shows an alternate control channel of 172.6625 MHz.

Keep an eye on this system as more information comes in: https://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?sid=10266

Unidentified Federal Trunked System A52

A quick update on the unidentified P-25 trunked sites I and others have heard in the Las Vegas area. Radio reference has updated the entry for this system and it now indicates that it is a multi-site, multi-state system, with sites in California, Arizona and Nevada.

I monitored the control channel data about a month ago on a visit to the area and it still only showed two sites active and no affiliations. But apparently they have been busy with this system build-out.

I suspect this is a Department of the Interior system that will support the Bureau of Reclamation and other DOI activities in the Lower Colorado region.

Although it is listed as "Clark, NV", I am certain that site 112 is at or near the Hoover Dam area, as I get close-call hits on that control channel when I am at the dam.

Here is what is showing at Radio Reference:

2-013     Site 13        Riverside, CA  172.1125

2-061     Site 61        Yuma, AZ       172.650

2-065     Site 65                       172.6502

2-075     Site 75                       172.1375

2-122     Site 112       Clark, NV      172.1125

http://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?sid=9989

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TSA Dropped 172.9000 MHz?

Back when the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) began operations in 2002, they were originally under the Department of Transportation (DOT). The radio frequencies that were first standardized to be used by the TSA nationwide included 169.3000, 172.1500 and 172.9000 MHz. These frequencies were culled from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) allocations, and they are still shared between the two agencies.

Since the new radio updates that the TSA has undergone, I have noted a distinct lack of any activity on the 172.9000 MHz frequency as I travel across the country. Most airports still have some activity on the 169.3000 and 172.1500 frequencies (as well as others), but mostly silence on the 172.9000. Anyone hearing activity on 172.9000 MHz, please let me know!

UPDATE - After reviewing my notes and talking with several other listeners, there are a few locations using 172.9 MHz for TSA activity, but it does still appear to be no longer the "primary" VHF repeater frequency that it once was for the TSA nationwide. 
 

Federal/Military use of NXDN

   I recently saw some discussions about some VHF federal frequencies being used for an NXDN IDAS trunked system in Southern California. Monitoring had provided clues to the system users and it appears to be utilized by the Los Alamitos Joint Forces Training Center in Orange County. So far, two frequencies have been identified as being used by this system, and updates can be found here: https://www.radioreference.com/apps/db/?sid=10019

163.4125 MHz - LCN1

163.4375 MHz - LCN2

? - LCN3

   While the use of DMR and NXDN digital modes is increasing in the federal VHF and UHF bands, it is a bit unusual for a military facility to go with a non-standard radio system type when other military bases around the world are joining large networked P-25 digital radio systems.

  

USS Portland HYDRA System

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Portland_(LPD-27)

Here is a rundown of the Portland HYDRA shipboard trunked system:

USS Portland (LPD-27)
EDACS Wide-band 

System ID – 003

397.2625         LCN-3

397.6125         LCN-5

397.7625         LCN-6

399.1625         LCN-7

399.3125         LCN-8

399.5625         LCN-9

399.7625         LCN-10

LCN-1 and LCN-2 were showing as part of the system, but were not active, so I could not confirm the frequencies. There was no LCN-4 showing.

Dockside security was using 395.2500, N293 and 398.6500, N293 for simplex communications.

   And one item that came via “close-call” near field monitoring, a UHF air band beacon on 313.6250 MHz. It was a continuous AM carrier with Morse characters “A-I-A” being send every 10 seconds. My assumption is since this vessel handles helicopters and tilt-rotor aircraft, a navigation/homing beacon to the ship would be a must. But I was also told by a friend who spent time in the US Navy that all Navy vessels carry such beacons. 

LAKE MEAD NRA Update

A quick update on an item I posted nearly a year ago: https://mt-fedfiles.blogspot.com/2017/07/new-vhf-trunking-at-lake-mead.html

At the time I heard the Site 2-122 control channel on 172.1375 MHz. During my most recent trip to the Las Vegas area, I caught the control channel on 172.1125 MHz. The site is still broadcasting the same system information and using a NAC of A52.

But during my times of watching the control channel activity, I have yet to see anyone using the system. I've not seen any affiliations to this site and no voice channel grants.

The general assumption is that this is a multi-site VHF P-25 trunked system for the Department of Interior, who manages the Lake Mead National Recreation Area. And with the disbanding of the Hoover Dam Police last year, it was also assumed that the Park Police would take over patrolling the Hoover Dam and related visitors centers. That activity has not yet shown up on the new radio system.

I'll continue to monitor this system as I make it into the Southern Nevada region.

More VHF Lo Band P25?

Last year I wrote about some VHF low-band (30-50 MHz) frequencies that were heard in the P-25 digital mode. The frequencies monitored were 30.0500 MHz, 31.2100 MHz and 35.1900 MHz, all in the P-25 digital mode.

A recent posting on Radio Reference indicated that 30.1000 MHz, N270 was heard in Ohio, possibly being used by the Ohio National Guard.

The wide-band, all mode radio systems being deployed by US military units are indeed capable of P25 digital mode on nearly any VHF or UHF frequencies.

 Anyone else looking for P25 in the VHF low band? Curious if anyone else has caught any.

New Southern AZ Finds

While visiting family in the Tucson area over Christmas 2017, I came across some new to me federal VHF channels in use. These include 2 new DMR VHF federal channels that I have not been able to determine who the user is yet.

168.7750 MHz DMR - Color Code 12, Time Slot 1
All conversations heard on Talk Group 111, so not part of a trunked system. All transmissions were encrypted.

169.3750 MHz DMR - Color Code 12, Time Slot 1
All conversations heard on Talk Group 122. Radio IDs were not the same as seen on 168.7750 MHz. All transmissions were encrypted.

   I'm not certain who these belong to. I had heard some analog traffic on the 168.7750 frequency in past years, but never identified who the user was. The frequencies themselves have been associated with the Department of Agriculture and the US Postal Service. My bet it probably on the USPS at some central mail facility in Tucson. Why they enabled the encryption is beyond me.

And as I was searching I came across two more CBP repeaters that I have not logged in my past visit:

169.8875 MHz, N208
173.9375 MHz, N304

Both carried encrypted traffic with the normal CBP radio identification ranges.

CBP Captures Smugglers TRBO Radios

A recent posting by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) reports the capture of a group smuggling marijuana across the southern Arizona border with Mexico. The Yuma Sector was involved in the arrest:

https://www.cbp.gov/newsroom/local-media-release/border-patrol-agents-arrest-15-connection-possible-smuggling-network

Photos that accompanied this report on the CBP Twitter feed showed the radios and batteries that were seized during this arrest.

The CBP photo shows several models of Motorola TRBO digital radios, probably UHF. I'm wondering if they will do any forensic radio analysis and see what frequencies they were on.

The drug cartels in Mexico have long been known to use radios, and not just portables. A while back, there was a wide-area radio system with linked repeaters that was reportedly build by a company in Houston, Texas. It was operating in an unusual part of the UHF military air band and was fully encrypted, of course.

Which brings me to a recent discovery when I was in Arizona. I left my radio searching unattended while parked at a fairly high altitude near the Mexican border. I recorded a number of encrypted DMR hits on unusual UHF frequencies. I caught quite a bit of traffic on 403.2500, 403.3500 and 403.4500 MHz. All the communications I recorded were using the same talk group number (116), so this might be part of a trunked system. Is this really related to drug smugglers? Who knows, but an interesting catch none the less...

Fairchild Air Force Base, Washington

   Fairchild Air Force Base, located near Spokane, in eastern Washington, started out life as the Spokane Army Air Depot back in 1940. Local business owners and citizens raised the money in order to bring the base to Spokane. The base was renamed in 1951 in honor of General Muir S. Fairchild. 

   Fairchild was at one time home to the 92^nd Bomb Group, flying the B-29 Superfortress. The base also supported the B-36 Peacemaker for a time in the early 1950’s. The base became home to B-25 bombers in 1956 and KC-135 tankers in 1958. During the Cold War, a ring of nine Atlas intercontinental ballistic missiles silos surrounded Spokane and Fairchild Air Force Base. These were operational from 1961 through 1965, as part of the Air Force’s 567^th Missile Squadron. The bombers moved away in 1993, making aerial refueling the base’s primary operational function.

   In addition to the tankers, Fairchild is home to the Air Force Survival School. The 336^th Training Group teaches SERE tactics, Survival - Evasion -  Resistance - Escape. Some of the real-world training takes place in the nearby Coleville National Forest.

   The base itself is served by a VHF P-25 digital trunked radio system. This system was a Motorola system years ago (the last time I was at the base), but has since been upgraded to a true, P-25 system. Base personnel that I spotted with radios seemed to be using mostly Motorola APX radios. The system appears to be a single site with no networking to anywhere else, but with the recent trend of military base radio systems being networked with other bases, I would not be surprised if that happened in the future here at Fairchild. Here are the specifics of the base trunked system:

Fairchild Air Force Base

System ID       5E1

WACN            BEE00

Site 001

138.0250

138.0375

138.0625

138.1375

138.1625

138.3375

138.3625

138.4125

138.4375

138.5125                                                                    

   In addition to the trunked system, there are a number of VHF and UHF conventional frequencies allocated to the base. While on base for the 2017 Skyfest air show (more on that later), I spotted a variety of antennas on hangers, buildings and small towers located all over the base. I have confirmed a few of the UHF air band frequencies, and have information that some of the VHF channels are being used for the USAF Survival School training. Here is a compilation of my database of conventional frequencies for Fairchild Air Force Base, as well as some Washington National Guard frequencies from nearby Spokane International Airport (KGEG):

118.3000         AM     Spokane (GEG) Tower

120.3500         AM     Fairchild (SKA) Tower

121.8500

121.9000         AM     Spokane (GEG) Ground

122.9500         AM     Spokane (GEG) Unicom

123.6000         AM     Fairchild (SKA) Ground

123.7500         AM     Spokane (GEG) Approach/Departure

124.3000         AM     Spokane (GEG) Approach/Departure

124.3250         AM     Spokane (GEG) ATIS

124.7000         AM     Spokane (GEG) Approach/Departure

126.2000         AM     Fairchild (SKA) Tower (alternate)

133.3500         AM     Spokane (GEG) Approach/Departure

134.1000         AM     Fairchild (SKA) Radar Approach

139.3000         AM     Pilot-To-Dispatch

139.3500         AM     Survival School helicopter

139.6250         FM      Survival School

139.8250         FM      Survival School

139.8750

141.7500

141.9000

142.2250         FM      Survival School Operations

143.8250

148.2250

149.1500

149.1750         FM      Survival School Operations

149.3000

150.0750

150.1250

150.1500

150.1750

150.2000         FM      Survival Operations Repeater

150.2250

150.2500

150.2750

150.3000

150.3250

150.3500

150.3750

150.4000

150.4750

150.5250

150.6500

150.6750

163.2750

163.4625

163.4875

163.5125

163.5875

164.5000

165.1625

173.4375

173.5125

173.5375

173.5625

173.5875

233.7000         AM     Fairchild (SKA) Tower

234.8000         AM     PMSV Weather

236.0000         AM     Survival Training

238.3000         AM     Maintenance

239.0250         AM     Washington Army Guard helicopters

240.1500         AM     SOF - Supervisor of Flying

240.5000         AM

251.9000         AM     Survival Rescue Training

253.4000         AM     Maintenance

254.3750         AM     Spokane (GEG) ATIS

254.7000         AM     Survival Training

256.4000

257.6250         AM     Fairchild (SKA) ATIS

263.0000         AM     Spokane (GEG) Approach/Departure

269.2500         AM     Fairchild (SKA) ATC

275.8000         AM     Fairchild (SKA) Ground

278.3000         AM     Spokane (GEG) Tower

282.2500         AM     Spokane (GEG) Approach/Departure

289.6000         AM     Fairchild (SKA) Tower (alternate)

293.7000         AM     Maintenance Operations

301.6000         AM     Survival School Training

314.3000         AM     Training

311.0000         AM     Command Post STRIKEHAWK

321.0000         AM     Command Post STRIKEHAWK

339.3000         AM     Fairchild (SKA) Radar Approach

348.6000         AM     Spokane (GEG) Ground

359.0000         AM     Training

363.8000         AM     Fairchild (SKA) Radar Approach

372.2000         AM     Pilot-To-Dispatch

372.5000         AM    

375.2000         AM     USAF METRO

381.3000         AM     Command Post

384.9000         AM     Fairchild (SKA) Radar Approach

385.0000         FM      Army Guard

387.4875         FM      Army Guard

388.8500         AM     Maintenance

389.8000         AM     Fairchild (SKA) Radar Approach

389.9125         FM      Army Guard

396.9000         AM     ANG Command Post 141ARW

407.4500         FM

413.0000         FM

413.4500         FM

http://155.178.201.160/d-tpp/1712/00553AD.PDF

2017 Solar Eclipse NASA Frequencies

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   A rare natural phenomenon that occurred on August 21^st, 2017 brought a lot of attention. A total solar eclipse, where the moon blocks the suns light for a short time, was visible across the United States. This was the first total solar eclipse that had been visible in the continental United States since 1979. I was fortunate enough to be very near the “path of totality”, that is the line along which the eclipse crossed the United States, plunging a narrow strip the earth in near total darkness for a few minutes in the middle of the day.

   There was tremendous media buildup prior to the eclipse, and there was concern by public safety agencies in the areas where the eclipse was going to pass, that the large crowds would be an issue.

In addition to the huge crowds, there was a large response of scientific researchers on hand to observe and record the eclipse. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) had multiple aircraft flying, including their WB-57 high-altitude research planes, up “chasing” parts of the eclipse as it crossed over the country. NASA provided continuous media coverage of the eclipse as it moved from the Pacific Ocean on to the Oregon coast. NASA has an excellent web site set up with all things about the eclipse and what they were doing with it: https://eclipse2017.nasa.gov

   Here is a list of likely VHF and UHF aircraft frequencies that would be used by NASA aircraft. Listeners in other regions of the country have confirmed some of these as in use by NASA aircraft, particularly by the NASA fleet aircraft that fly between NASA facilities in Houston, Florida and California. Keep these in your scanner and see what you hear:

123.1250

123.4500

135.8250

230.5000         AM                 NASA WB-57

235.4000

259.6500

259.6750

259.7000         AM                 NASA Gulfstream III doing live TV reports

259.7250

260.7500

260.7750

261.6250

264.0500

278.9500

278.9750

279.0000

279.0250

296.7000

296.7750

296.8000

296.8250

314.6000

320.7000

382.6000

   Besides NASA, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) flew some aircraft to observe and record the eclipse. I did not have any luck catching the NOAA air traffic on any agency specific air-to-ground frequencies, at least in the Portland, OR area. 

VA IDAS Trunking System

New Federal IDAS Trunked System

   Recently, a friendly source in the Seattle, Washington area passed along information on what appeared to be a new, three-site IDAS trunked system in the Puget Sound area. IDAS stands for Icom Digital Advanced System, which is an Icom trunked protocol using the NXDN open standard developed by Icom and Kenwood.  

   The frequencies that have been identified with this system are 408.0375 MHz, 408.4250 MHz and 410.3250 MHz. So far, the system has only revealed these three original site frequencies that were first noted. The frequencies are all using NXDN digital mode, so they can be monitored with the TRX models of Whistler scanners or using SDR radios with the appropriate software. The three sites all seem to carry the same voice traffic simultaneously.

   By listening for several days, it was determined that the likely user was the Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Centers. There are two VA Medical Centers in the Seattle area – the American Lake facility in Tacoma, Washington and the Seattle facility in Seattle, Washington. https://www.pugetsound.va.gov/locations/directions.asp

   So far, the IDAS trunked system appears to be used by maintenance and shuttle transportation. VA Security has been reportedly using UHF P-25 repeaters at the Seattle area VA facilities, but has also been reported to have talk groups on the federal VHF Integrated Wireless Network (IWN) trunked system that supports a majority of federal agencies in the region.

KSC Updates Trunking System

The UHF band trunked radio system at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida has received and upgrade from the older Motorola Type II system to a new APCO P-25 Phase II system.

The changes occurred just recently, even as Hurricane Irma threatened the entire state of Florida. Some listeners have posted questions on Radio Reference wondering why they can't hear the KSC trunked system any more.

The new system reportedly has three separate trunked sites and is not simulcast, but using different frequencies at each site.

I will have more information as it becomes available! Check back with this blog...

New VHF Trunking at Lake Mead

On a recent visit to Hoover Dam and Lake Mead, near Las Vegas, I discovered a VHF trunking control channel. It appears to be a two-site VHF P-25 trunked system, likely to cover both the Hoover Dam area and likely the Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

I had  received reports of hearing the control channel from site 2112 on 172.1375 MHz, and I found the control channel for site 2122 on 172.1375 MHz loud and clear at the Hoover Dam via a close call hit on my Uniden 436 scanner. I was unable to pick up the control channel from site 2112 on my visit.

It only shows two sites on the air right now, and no users were seen affiliating or using the system while I was monitoring. Both the Hoover Dam police and Lake Mead NRA operations were on their normal VHF conventional channels.

More information as the system usage increases.

Here is what I found via PRO96COM:

System ID             : A52
WACN                  : BD000
Tower Number (Decimal): 2-122
Tower Number (Hex)    : T027A
Flavor                : Phase 1

-Tables
#Format: Table ID,Base Freq,Spacing,Input Offset,Assumed/Confirmed,BandWidth,Slots
00,171.00000,0.01250,-7.47500,"Confirmed",0.01250,1
01,171.00000,0.01250,-7.30000,"Confirmed",0.01250,1
02,171.00000,0.01250,-7.16250,"Confirmed",0.01250,1

-Frequencies
#Format: Channel,Usage,Frequency(/Slot),Input Channel,Input Frequency(/Slot),Input Explicit(1/0),Hit Count
"02-0089","c",172.11250,"02-0089",164.95000,0,0

-Neighbors
#Format: TowerID,TowerIDHex,System ID,Channel,Frequency,Tower Name
2112,"T0270",a52,"01-0091",172.13750,""