194 lines
8.2 KiB
Plaintext
194 lines
8.2 KiB
Plaintext
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MILITARY TRAINING
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-----------------
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Source: Monitoring Times
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Reprinted by: John Johnson, KWV8BP
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The United States Military is the main source of radio traffic in the 225 to
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400 Mhz. range. The aircraft, when operating at high altitudes, can be heard
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for hundreds of miles.
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The Boeing E-3A Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) aircraft (based
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on a KC-135/707) is identifiable by the distinctive top mounted airdome that
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encloses its RF electronic hardware. The AWACS aircraft has the ability to
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radar track a multitude of airborne targets and display the data locally (at
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aircraft-located operator consoles) or remotely via digital RF links with
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ground based facilities. This capability lends itself readily to utilization
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in training exercises where the AWACS aircraft are used as the controller to
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an airborne simulated attack and defense posture network. As a result, the
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aircraft are used extensively during training exercises in southern Alabama
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and the Gulf of Mexico.
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The AWACS will direct one group of fighters, designated as the defenders,
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against a simulated hostile force of fighters, known as the aggressors. The
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AWACS controller is in constant communication with the defender force
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informing them of the range, bearing and formation of the aggressor force
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during the exercise.
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The AWACS role in an active setting is similar to that of the training
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exercise. The AWACS data, in conjunction with ground based IFF (Identify
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Friend or Foe) radar, would permit the detection, identification and tracking
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of all aircraft approaching or entering into the airspace being monitored. A
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commander, based upon his evaluation of aircraft not identified by IFF or
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from prefiled flight plans, can direct a defender fighter force to intercept
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unidentified aircraft for visual identification and defensive actions if
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required.
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The training exercises are quite interesting to monitor and have been
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confirmed on the following frequencies (note all frequencies are in Mhz. AM
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mode unless otherwise noted):
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225.800, 226.000, 235.200, 239.400, 261.200, 284.800, 308.000, 313.000,
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313.600, 371.000, 398.200
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Kc-135s are widely deployed aerial refueling aircraft or simply
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stated-tankers. The KC-135s are based on Boeing 707 type commercial aircraft.
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Another commonly deployed tanker is the KC-10 which is based on the
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McDonnel-Douglas DC-10. The tankers provide the fuel- station-in-the-sky for
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fighter and communications between tankers and fueling aircraft are quite
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imperative if the job is to be done without incident. The boom operator (a
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boom is used to connect the tanker with refueling aircraft and provide the
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path for the fuel transfer) needs to communicate with the pilot of the tanker
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as well as the aircraft being fueled. Table one presents the frequencies
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utilized during aerial refueling communications.
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Table One Aerial Refueling Frequencies
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---------------------------------------
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267.900 Pine Hill MOA (Military Operating Area)--Alabama
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280.100 "
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349.200 "
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354.400 "
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373.100 "
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359.200 Gulf of Mexico
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373.200 "
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373.300 "
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238.900 Mississippi
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289.700 "
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235.100 Birmingham (AL) Primary
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366.300 " Secondary
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139.870 " VHF Primary
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260.200 Mobile (AL) to Alexandria (LA) AR tract 302
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143.800 Tanker-to-tanker, Air National Guard-Knoxville, TN
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Aircraft from two wings and three groups--the 33rd TFW (Tactical Fighter
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Wing) at Eglin AFB (FL); the 159th TFG (Tactical Fighter Group) at New
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Orleans Naval Air Station; the 187th TFG at Dannelley Field, Montgomer ANG
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(AL) and the 186th TRG at Key Field, Meridian ANG (MS)-- are on the air on a
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daily basis.
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Aircraft operating from a base or in route to a base will often utilize a
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Command Post channel. The Command Post (CP) channel is used by aircraft to
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report crew and fuel status and requests for maintenance or V.I.P. treatment
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when a dignitary or high ranking officer is aboard. Aircraft will also report
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emergencies over the CP channel informing of the nature of the emergency and
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special circumstances, if any, concerning the aircraft or crew. The CP
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fequencies and primary aircraft operating from the given location are listed
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as follows:
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267.800 159th TFG; F-15s
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286.500 187th TFG "Bama Control"; F-4Ds
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287.300 117th TRW; RF-4Cs
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290.900 33rd TFW "Mission Control"; F-15s
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292.300 186th TRG; RF-4Cs
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The CP channels are usually referred to as channel one and the remaining
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nineteen channels of the twenty channel UHF radios are used for
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approach/departure, FAA centers and operational channels. Table two lists the
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channel and frequency designators for the 187th TFG at Dannelly Field,
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Montgomery, AL.
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Table Two 187th TFG
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--------------------
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CH.
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1 286.500 CP--Bama Control
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2 270.300 Clearance Delivery
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3 348.600 Ground Control
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4 257.600 Tower
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5 319.900 Approach/Departure South
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6 369.200 " " North
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7 291.000 Approach
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8 351.900 Atlanta Center
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9 262.300 Elgin Mission Control
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10 291.800 C-62 RCO Shoulder
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11 347.300 C-52 Darken
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12 291.600 Houston Center
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13 297.100 Shelby Bombing Range (MS)
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14 276.100 Sentry Standard Aerial Refueling Primary
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15 287.400 Have Quick (refer to text)
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16 297.600 Have Quick
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17 314.300 Have Qucik
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18 359.100 Have Quick
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19 376.000 Have Quick
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Have Quicks, also referred to as Active Nets or active Manuals, are a
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scrambled form of communications via a frequency hopping scheme. The voice
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text is transmitted over a series of the listed Have Quick frequencies
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several times a second. The Have Quick frequencies listed are used by the
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33rd TFW, 186th TRG and 187th TFG.
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The aircraft from the above-mentioned bases operate and patrol in resticted
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airspace on a routine basis. Warning areas are protective air space that are
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monitored and patrolled by the U.S. Four warning areas cover the northern
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half of the Gulf of Mexico, off the coasts of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama
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and Florida and are designated as W-543, W-155, W-151 and W-470 respectively.
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These four areas cover over 44,000 square miles of the Gulf of Mexico. The
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frequencies utilized by aircraft operating in the warning areas are as
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follows:
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W-453 228.800, 251.000, and 277.400
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W-151 261.100, 286.200, 327.700, 337.700, 344.500 and 351.400
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W-470 261.000, 271.200, 287.500, 301.700, 311.200, and 351.300
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The 33rd TFW at Eglin AFB utilizes many discrete frequencies-- frequencies
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that are not assigned or issued by any ARTCC (centers). The discrete
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frequencies, along with the Have Quick frequencies, comprise the frequencies
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used during training and operational missions. The discrete frequencies are
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as follows:
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232.150, 234.100, 237.400, 239.400, 252.525, 279.700, 292.200, 294.500,
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299.500, 308.000, 314.200, 315.200, 323.200, 325.500, 333.550, 349.500,
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351.050, 354.200, 357.300, and 399.750
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Table three presents the 33rd TFW frequencies and usages at Eglin AFB. Table
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four lists frequencies used in MOAs in southern U.S.
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Table Three Eglin AFB UHF AC Operations
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----------------------------------------
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280.500 Emergency Nomad 6
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290.900 Mission Control
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291.900 Hurlburt Field
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322.600 Approach/Departure
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335.800 Ground Control
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348.100 Tower
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358.300 Approach/Departure
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381.300 Raymond 11-TAC Net
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388.900 Clearance
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398.200 Radar Control
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Table Four MOAs in southern U.S.
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---------------------------------
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Birmingham 1 and 2 MOAs 252.900 and 352.800
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Bull Dog MOA 352.400
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Camden Ridge MOA 267.900, 280.100, 339.100
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Pine Hill MOA 267.900, 280.100, 339.100
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Rose Hill MOA 288.300
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Snow Bird MOA 288.800, 297.800, 315.100
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This file was brought to you by the Hotline BBS, give us a call, we have an
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entire section dedicated to Scanner & Radio related topics..
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The Hotline BBS 304-736-9169 or 304-743-7909
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