[CW] another earhart blurb

[David J. Ring, Jr.]

The Itasca/NRUI was also listening on 7500 kc/s HF direction finding
frequency and trying to get KHAQQ to transmit on that frequency, but NRUI
was not able to hear KHAQQ on any frequency except 3105 kc/s.

NRUI asked KHAQQ to transmit on 3105, 6210, 7500 (HF D/F), 500 and 500 D/F
kc/s - but no signals were logged as being heard except on 3105 kc/s.

>From the logs available on the web page: http://www.tighar.org/

Starting at 01/1917 there is a notation in "POSITION TWO LOG" that "very
weak sigs on 3105 / unreadable and seemed shift about"

The first notation that NRUI hears KHAQQ is at 02 July 0245-48. POSITION 2
LOG

At 02/0646 KHAQQ announces that she is about 100 miles out. POSITION 2 LOG

At 02/0718 on NRUI, Chief Radioman Bellarts gets RM3 W L Galten (BG) to
relieve him at position 2 and CRM Bellarts and "DC" go to NRUI's Main D/F -
500 kc.  (Is "DC" RM3 Thompson who was on this logsheet at 0200???)

02/0742 KHAAQ says she cannot hear NRUI and is running out of fuel.  NO QSO
as of yet. POSITION 2 LOG

02/0743 NRUI transmits acknowledgement of KHAAQ on both 3105 and 500 kc/s
but is not acknowledged by KHAAQ.  NO QSO YET.  (POSITION 2 LOG)

02/0758 KHAQQ says "We are circling but cannot hear you go ahead on 7500
kc/s with a long count either now or on the schedule time on the 1/2 hour."
(POSITION 2 LOG )

THERE IS A NOTATION at this point in the POSITION 2 LOG that KHAAQ is S5 -
which in commercial terms is QSA5 which is the loudest signal strength.

Notice THERE IS NO TWO-WAY COMMUNICATIONS AT THIS POINT. EVEN THOUGH SIGNAL
STRENGTH IS QSA5.

02/0800-3 KHAAQ says that she HEARS Itasca NRUI.  She says that she can't
take a bearing on NRUI ("unable to get a minimum please take bearing on us
and answer on 3105 kc/s with voice."  Then KHAQQ starts sending LONG DASHES
for direction-finding. POSITION 2 LOG

At 02/0804 there is an operators notation in the POSITION 2 LOG that NRUI2
(D/F station) giving to "TO" (T. J. O'Hare RM3) [who is on POSITION ONE]
dope that no signals on 3105 kc/s and impossible to work  ITASCA.  NRUI2
would be the callsign of the associated Radio Direction-Finding station of
the Itasca.

The D/F station on the ITASCA can't even hear Earhart even though the main
station on the ITASCA says she is QSA5.
POSITION 2 LOG

02/0805 ITASCA sends via radiotelephone that "We (NRUI) hear your signals,
but we are unable to hear you to take a bearing (NRUI2) get a minumum (a
null for d/f) please (KHAAQ) take a bearing on us and answer 3105 kc/s with
voice. POSITION 2 LOG

The other log POSITION 1 LOG - which TO (RM3 O'Hare) is keeping - is in
contact with NRUI2 - the RDF station of ITASCA where

About an hour before IN POSITION 1 LOG, TO (RM3 O'Hare) notes at 02/0700-03
that is is working Howland Island on key and 'fone.


POSITION 1 LOG  02/0857 TO notes that KHAAQ "hears us".

POSITION 1 LOG (Operator TO) logs at 02/0730 that "Thompson RM3C on D/F"
(This confirms that operator sine "DC" is RM3 Thompson. - see above.)

POSITION 1 LOG / Operator TO logs KHAAQ at 02/0740 as saying "Earhart on
now, says she is running out of gas, only 1/2 hour left, can't hear us at
all.  He logs NRUI as sending "We hear her and are sending on 3105 and 500
at the same time, constantly and listening in for her frequently. (This is
logged in by BG in the first log at 02/0742))

At 02/0800 TO makes a log entry in the POSITION 1 LOG:  "SENDING CONSTANTLY
ON 7.5 MEGS AND 3105 [kc/s] CALLING HER AND TELLING HER TO GA [go ahead] on
3105 [kc/s] THAT WE HEAR HER / STOPPING FREQUENTLY TO LISTEN IN FOR HER /
LOG AT PSN NR 2 KEEPING PERTINENT DATA.

There is no log entries in POSITION 1 LOG from 02/0800 to 02/0856

After 02/0800 TO at POSITION ONE says: sending on 7,500 and 3,105 kc/s
continuously for Earhart KHAAQ. (POSITION 1 LOG)  (A later entry in the
Position One log (NR1) at says that Position Two (NR2) is on 3105 kc/s - so
perhaps TO at Position One was on (either) 7,500 /or/ 6,210 kc/s. )

But at 02/0805 ONLY a minute or two after, KHAAQ acknowledges that she hears
ITASCA and starts sending long dashes, she doesn't acknowledge hearing NRUI
at all - even though they are transmitting on 3105, 7500 and 500 kc/s.
(POSITION 2 LOG).
(BG's log)

In BG's log (POSITION 2) at 02/0843 KHAAQ announces she is running on the
line 157 337.
She also says that she will repeat the message.  It is obvious that KHAAQ is
not hearing NRUI.

02/0925 entry in POSITION 1 LOG notes:  "TUNING ON 6210 KCS / PSN 2 ON 3105
KCS / D/F ON 500 KCS N N N"  TO is tuning 6210 kc/s at Position 1, BG at
Position 2 is on 3105 kc/s and the Chief and DC are on the RDF transmitter
on 500 kc/s.

02/0935 entry in TO at POSITION 1 LOG says:  "CALLED HOWLAND Island  and
TOLD IM (unsure what "IM" means... is it the sine for the Howland Island
operator Radioman 2nd Class Frank Cipriani?) to GET D/F GoinG AT ALL COSTS
VA (perhaps VA means "and no more words out of you"  - as in the proceedural
signal SK or VA).  Then TO notes he shifts frequency from 6210 kc/s to 7500
kc/s (H/F Direction Finding Frequency).

02/0936 entry in POS/1 log says:  CALED EARHART ON 7500 KCS ES [and] TOLD
HER ANSwer ON 3105 [kc/s] AM TUNING NoW FER HER - TUNING BROADLY ON 7500 /
[Position] NR2 TUNING ON 3105 KCS [Position] NR3 ON BRIDGE ON 500 KCS.
UNABLE READ HER /

02/0945-48 POSITION ONE (NR1) LOG:  KHAAQ DE NRUI / SEVERAL TIMES (that is
this was repeated several times).  WE CAN HEAR U (you) GOOD ON 3105 (kc/s)
SO PSE (please) GVE (give) US YOUR PSN (position) ES (and) GA (go ahead) on
3105 (kc/s) AR (end of message) KKK THIS WAS SPELLED OUT IN FULL.  [Probably
meaning that it was NOTt sent in "radio shorthand" and perhaps also that
3105 was spelled out as "THREE ONE ZERO FIVE".]

02/1005 (Position ONE (NR1) LOG):  NRUI2 V NRUI GET D/F GG (going) AT ANY
(any) COST / RPTD/   BT  (This is echoed by a entry in Position 2 log made
by BG at  1002-2  NRUI2 V NRUI: - PER TO / GET THE RDO COMPASS WRKING NOW,
7500

At 02/1008-10 there is an entry in POSITION TWO (NR2) log that I don't fully
understand.  (It is information "per TO" according to the log.  TO is RM3
O'Hare who is at POSITION ONE (NR1).

NPM NPU V [this is] NRUI V-S [???what does this mean???] ZME [Pass in
direction finding bearing of...] / NPM V [this is] NRUI INT [interogative -
that is "asking this as a question"] ZCT (I don't know the old meaning of
ZCT) KHAQQ INT ZCY [????]

I think I'll leave the log books for a while.  I am stuck on the old
meanings of the Z signals as they no longer mean what they used to mean, but
I would guess that the 1012 entry in NR1 log means "have you contacted KHAAQ
and if so, on what frequency.


>From a look at these two logs, I would gather that KHAAQ was closest to NRUI
at 0759-0800.
Log NR1 reports first reception of KHAAQ at 0245 on 3105 kc/s.
Log NR1 again reports reception of KHAAQ at 0345 on 3105 kc/s.

Log NR1 - NPM V NRUI  - this seems to indicate that NRUI asks NPM is he can
hear KHAAQ and NPM replies "Yes but can't make her out."  But it probably is
NPM asking NRUI if they can hear KHAAQ. 0440

Log NR1 - immediate continues after the 0440 entry and notes that Earhart
broke in on 3105 kc/s, but she is saying "Now..." but she is unreadable.
NRUI tells NPM to wait, and NRUI calls KHAAQ on 3105.  02/0457 entry.

Log NR1  has an entry at 0203 "NPU on 500 NIL" - I would assume from this
that NPU, US Navy
Radio, Tutuila, American Samoa (90 miles East of Pago Pago) - had
communications with NRUI on 500 kHz.  I would also assume that they could
contact Peal Harbor / NPM on 500 kc/s.

Log NR1 by 0605 says that they can understand Earhart:  KHAAQ wants bearing
on 3105.

Log NR1 by 0642 says that KHAAQ is "fairly clear now".

Log NR1 0740 KHAAQ reports she is almost out of gas. (1/2 hour of gas left).

REMEMBER THAT LOGBOOK NR2 ENTRY FOR 02/0805 ONLY a minute or two after
saying she heard NOTHING from NRUI, KHAAQ acknowledges that she hears ITASCA
and starts sending long dashes, immediately after this she doesn't
acknowledge hearing NRUI at all - even though they are transmitting on 3105,
7500 and 500 kc/s. (POSITION 2 LOG).  (Sounds like a bad antenna!)

Log NR1 0908 says that NR1 is transmitting on 7500 telling her to go ahead
on 3105 kc/s,

Questions!!!  When did CRM Bellarts come down from the Bridge?  What
transmitter was the CRM Bellarts use, or did he just tune the transmitter
for NR2 position?  If so, why?

Log NR2 0844-46 KHAQQ TO ITASCA (on phone) WE ARE ON THE LINE 157 337 WE WL
REPT MSG WE WL REPT THIS ON 6210 KCS WAIT 3105/A3 S5 (Airhart is on 3105
kc/s using A3 (A.M. phone) and her signals are extremely strong.  ?/KHAQQ
XMISION [transmission] WE ARE RUNNING ON North ES [and] South line.  LSNING
6210 KCS

Log NR2 then adds:  KHAQQ de NRUI - Heard you ok.   on 3105 kc/s.  Maintain
QSO [radio contact] on 3105, 7500 [d/f frequency].

I read a bit further on the internet, and came up with the New Zealand ship
"Achilles" and her story.  She was at Tutuila during the Earhart episode,
and part of the narrative mentioned that they tried to contact KHK in
Honolulu (Commerical station) but instead contacted Pearl Harbor / NPM.

So probably NRUI had comms with NPU and NPM at 0203.

You can read about how they heard a probably autoalarm on 500 kHz.
http://www.rnzncomms.net.nz/jackharker/achillesChapt3.html

I read the page about the speculation on not hearing KHAAQ because of the
transmission on 12,600 but I don't buy it.  NMC (USCG San Francisco) didn't
answer.  So KHAAQ stopped sending right away.  Or at least was in a "call
and wait" proceedure.

Still, if the operator calling NMC had his "cans" on...  maybe he didn't
hear KHAAQ and the other fellow did?  But there is no log entry in the NR1
log, so I would almost guarantee that Position NR1 caught KHAAQ's signal.
The log entry says she was "QSA5" - you don't miss a signal that strong.

I think right at this time 0844 - that KHAAQ was passing NRUI for the SECOND
time - having flown over the FIRST time at 0805

73

David J. Ring, Jr., N1EA
Radio Officer, U.S. Merchant Marine, (Ret.)