[CW] Morse code announced to be Immaterial World Heritage

[Danny Douglas via CW]

When were you there Don?   I arrived July 1960, got caught in the Berlin 
wall extension, and left July 1962.  In ASA, MOS 058.   Then, went to 
work as a civilian in 1967, and wound up back in Asmara Jan 1968,working 
at Det 3, for Diplomatic Communications sharing spaces with MESA.   Left 
there around July 70 and wound up in Athens for a couple of more years, 
then Hong Kong for a couple, Caracas for 2 more, then England for almost 
8 years.

My first tour in Asmara, the radio Marina building was still there, and 
in fact I worked on turning it into an indoor rifle range where I taught 
Hunter Safety, and Rifle courses to the Boy Scouts (I was Assistant 
Scoutmaster - first tour - and SM on second tour).  I was overly peeved 
, upon return, to find the stupid army had torn it down between tours.  
Same as the Gherry race course and park area we had built next to the 
old zoo.  It too was gone and there set the NSA big dish, right smack 
where we had the picnic shelters.  Its not like the idiots didnt have a 
half million acres to set it someplace else around there.

Upon arrival here in Virginia, I was at a district Boy Scout committee 
meeting, and found two other guys there that had both been in Asmara.  
One of them actually worked in the Radio Marina building - in 1948!  The 
other had been there in 1954.  They filled me in on a lot of stories 
about the place.- such as the Boeing facility, rebuilding damaged planes 
which had been shipped down from N. Africa during the war.  I also 
assisted Mr. James, who was assigned to the consulate there, in his 
trips around Eritrea, visiting farms and villages.  He was the Point 
Four assignee to Ethiopia ( the precursor to US Aid.   I did that on my 
days off, and it sure was a lot of interesting fun and adventure.  I 
have been asked to write up a history about all that, but never got 
around to it.  All these moves around the world and have lost most of 
the photos I took around that time.

Yeah,  I wouldnt set a foot within a thousand miles of there now, though 
would love to do so, if conditions were right.
> Donald Chester via CW <mailto:cw at mailman.qth.net>
> Tuesday, November 04, 2014 2:23 AM
> You were probably there about the same time I was. We missed out on 
> the old
> Radio Marina towers that used to stand on what was later called Tract A. I
> have seen photos, two self-supporting four-sided towers probably 200 
> ft. or
> more high, built by the Italians prior to WWII, used for Italian naval
> communication I was told. Something right out of radio history, It was a
> real shame that they tore them down. They probably supported a multi-wire
> flat-top or cage antenna. I could imagine stringing a HF dipole between
> them. Long after the towers were gone, locals still called Tract A "Radio
> Marina".
>
> About 15 years ago, I found out after the fact that a group of local hams
> had gone on a DX-pedition to Eritrea. I might have tried to join them if I
> had known about it in advance. Considering the political turmoil that has
> enveloped that part of the world, I think you are right; it wouldn't be
> advisable for Americans or Brits to travel there now.
>
> Don k4kyv
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
>
> From: Danny Douglas via CW <cw at mailman.qth.net>
>
> I served Uncle Sam, in a small base called Kagnew Station, up on an
> 8,000 ft high mountain in Ethiopia. Our little home brew 2 element, 3 band
> Quad, sat on top of a water tower, at the highest point in the city of
> Asmara. It was so far up that our rotator wouldnt work because we didnt
> have a large enough control wire and the wire wouldnt deliver enough 
> voltage
> to turn it. We sat it pointing stateside and there we
> worked EVERYBODY. But I digress, and the true "old" antenna was a
> buried cable, maybe thousands of feet long, which I saw there. It had
> previously been used by the small Naval contingent there, to communicate
> with submarines in the Red Sea. I dont know how that worked - but
> apparently did. Probably still there, if anyone wants to go to Eritrea and
> put it on the air. Suggestion - DONT.
>
>
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> =30=
>

-- 
Danny Douglas


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