[Scan-DC] Good, strong, analog signals in Arlington area?

Thu Mar 8 09:57:34 EST 2012

Andy:

Keep in mind that the antennas for ground to aircraft comms are often 
directional antennas angled about 45 degrees above horizontal.  I believe 
you can see this at the comm facility in Falls Church on Haycock Rd.  Also 
the tower comms are not necessarily  transmitted from the tower location. 
So although you are close to the tower, you may be some distance from the 
transmitter location.

The tower to airborne aircraft comms are not intended to be heard on the 
ground.  This is one of the reasons they change frequencies once on the 
ground.  You will hear this at DCA as "switch to ground point seven" meaning 
to go to 122.7 MHz, the ground control frequency.

You may want to try 134.35 MHz which is the helicopter frequency. You will 
hear the tower talking to all aircraft but you will only hear responses from 
helicopters.

Something else you may want to try listening to is GW University police on 
464.200 MHz (you can probably see their repeater antenna from you building). 
Mostly security checks of building but sometimes there is some interesting 
traffic.

David

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Clegg, Andrew W." <aclegg at nsf.gov>
To: "Tom Dawson" <wb3akd at earthlink.net>; <Scan-DC at mailman.qth.net>
Sent: Thursday, March 08, 2012 8:48 AM
Subject: Re: [Scan-DC] Good, strong, analog signals in Arlington area?

>I thought of that, so I installed an air-band filter (112 - 138 MHz),
> and it helped quite a bit, but the tower is still real weak. Planes come
> booming in. Even planes on the ground at DCA come in better than the
> tower. Weird.
>
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: scan-dc-bounces at mailman.qth.net
> [mailto:scan-dc-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Tom Dawson
> Sent: Thursday, March 08, 2012 8:46 AM
> To: Scan-DC at mailman.qth.net
> Subject: Re: [Scan-DC] Good, strong, analog signals in Arlington area?
>
> Very probably saturation of the receiver front end.  When I lived in
> North
> Arlington WAMU came out of the cable from my crappy home brew discone at
> -15
> dBm.
>
>
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "Clegg, Andrew W." <aclegg at nsf.gov>
> To: "Blair Thompson" <b_thom at juno.com>; <Scan-DC at mailman.qth.net>
> Sent: Wednesday, March 07, 2012 3:44 PM
> Subject: Re: [Scan-DC] Good, strong, analog signals in Arlington area?
>
>
>> Surprisingly, the DCA tower does not come in too well even on the far
>> side (away from the tower) of the parking lot at Gravelly Point Park!
>> That amazes me.
>>
>> I have a discone on my apartment building in Ballston, up 220 ft in
> the
>> air, and even there, the DCA tower signal is pretty weak. That's also
>> strange.
>>
>>>From the frequencies that people have responded with so far, I'm able
> to
>> receive:
>>
>> Capitol Police
>> Park Police
>> Ballston Common Mall (100 ft away; "all elevators are back in service
>> today")
>>
>> I also used the search utility, and (after locking out tons of pagers
>> and other digital junk) stumbled upon a frequency for Washington-Lee
>> High School: 152.410 MHz. Seems to be an all-purpose administrative
>> frequency. Very active during bus departure time today.
>>
>> My own agency (National Science Foundation) has gone digital, in the
> 410
>> MHz Fed band.
>>
>> Why do I get the feeling that before long, the only thing you'll be
> able
>> to hear with an analog scanner is NOAA weather broadcasts?
>>
>> Andy
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: scan-dc-bounces at mailman.qth.net
>> [mailto:scan-dc-bounces at mailman.qth.net] On Behalf Of Blair Thompson
>> Sent: Wednesday, March 07, 2012 3:29 PM
>> To: Scan-DC at mailman.qth.net
>> Subject: Re: [Scan-DC] Good, strong, analog signals in Arlington area?
>>
>> No DCA, huh? I would have thought that it would come in. You're
> probably
>> too far to pick up trains, too. Unless you're a railfan, they get old
>> fast.
>>
>> I was at a meeting up on the 21st floor of the building at 1100 Wilson
>> Blvd. last week. I didn't have my scanner, but it has to offer
> topnotch
>> reception. It's in Rosslyn, and you can see landmarks that are miles
>> away. If it's not line of sight to BWI, it comes close.
>>
>> ---------- Original Message ----------
>> From: "Clegg, Andrew W." <aclegg at nsf.gov>
>> To: <scan-dc at mailman.qth.net>
>> Subject: [Scan-DC] Good, strong, analog signals in Arlington area?
>> Date: Wed, 7 Mar 2012 08:57:49 -0500
>>
>> Now that I've lost Arlington's analog trunk system, I'm looking for a
>> new purpose for my analog scanner in my office. ... DCA tower is out
>> (too weak).
>>
>>
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