[MRCA] Re: [Milsurplus] Tree Antenna Maybe underground?

[Richard Arland, W3OSS]

Actually just prior to retiring from the USAF in 1987 the Rockwell/Collins 
folks came by HQ TAC at Langley and gave us a 3 hour briefing in their 
survivable HF radio system that, in fact, used underground antennas. It 
seems that he Russians had been doing this for quite a few years. The idea 
was to have a system that would work right after a nuclear exchange when the 
ionosphere was badly disrupted. The R/C system used computers and prop info 
to pick the mode, freq and antennas to establish and maintain commo links. 
It worked pretty well, according the R/C, but they were trying to sell the 
idea to the military at the time. Not sure if it ever went over with the 
military but it sounded rather interesting. Their system relied on something 
similar to Pactor/packet and was basically error-free even during extremely 
bad prop condx.

If there are any 5th Group SF types in the audience who served in Viet Nam, 
they can tell you about the "underground" antennas in the "A" camps. As I 
understand it they placed antenna wire inside bamboo poles and laid them on 
the ground or just under the ground because "Uncle Charles" liked to nail 
the commo antennas with mortars during the initial stages of an attack. The 
fall-back radio set was normally a GRC-109 that would load into a wet brick. 
Jim Kearman, KR1S, told me of copying CW right in the noise levels from 
these guys. Good ears, huh?


73 Rich W3OOS

----- Original Message ----- 
From: <Radioman390 at cs.com>
To: ""Richard Arland"" <richard.arland at verizon.net>
Sent: Friday, December 08, 2006 2:32 PM
Subject: Re: [Milsurplus] Tree Antenna Maybe underground?


>I have in my possession an underground antenna (receive only), still new in 
>the box. It is a cylinder maybe 5" in diameter and 18" long with coax 
>coming out.
> The instruction sheet says to bury it in moist soil down about 2 feet.
> Apparently a commercial product. Inside the cylinder is something 
> encapsulated in tar.
> Any info?
>
>
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