381 lines
17 KiB
Plaintext
381 lines
17 KiB
Plaintext
THE LOS NUMEROS UPDATE
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HAVANA MOON
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MoonBeam Press
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PO Box 149, Depart. BB
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Briarcliff Manor, NY 10510
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=============================
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On the plum in flower
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By my eave,
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The pale moon hangs
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At the dawning hour.
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-- Tenro
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=============================
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BULLETIN
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015UTC Monday, 01-21-90. "Foghorn" observed on the air-to-ground
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frequency of 6577 kHz. As if AERINC didn't already have enough
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trouble, what with Numbers transmissions and other types of jammers.
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0200 UTC Monday, 01-21-90. The electronic war (?) continues at a
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highly elevated level as 6577 kHz is bombarded - not only by the
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"Foghorn", but by a "Buzz Saw Jammer", and the usual 5-D Spanish
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transmission. Said frequency being rendered totally useless for
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numerous aircraft in flight.
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WAKE UP, State Department!
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Exclusive to A*C*E - At some few times during the month of June,
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1989, the 5-D Spanish transmission on 6577 kHz was determined to
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be originating from within a 25-mile radius of Managua, Nicaragua.
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This information, as usual, from those sources that decline to be
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identified.
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* * * * * * * * * *
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* Numbers 101, Part 3 *
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Type 3 Transmission Formats
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---------------------------
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"Atencion 133 00 30" (repeated for several minutes)
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"30" (repeated for less than one minute)
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xxxxx xxxxx . . . (ciphertext or crypt)
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"Final" (repeated twice)
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The first three digits are the identifier, with the following two
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digits an unknown. The last two digits before the crypt are the
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"group count" digits.
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To the best of my knowledge, this transmission format is seldom
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heard - I would be very interested in reception reports from
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any of you who might encounter it.
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And speaking of reception reports, the *IDEAL* report would con-
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sist of the Identifier, Group Count and the first three and last
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5-digit groups of the crypt. This in conjunction with the usual
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details regarding frequency, time in UTC, etc. Now, while I
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realize that this is time consuming and out of the question for
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most - any of you who would be willing to spend the time would
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be contributing greatly to Numbers research efforts.
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If you listen very carefully to 5-digit and CW transmissions,
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you'll find that the pause after every tenth group is slightly
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longer than that between the other groups of the crypt. If you
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were to record the transmission at 2.4 cm and then play it back
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at 1.2 cm, you would notice the pause following the tenth
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group to be very prominent.
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The number of groups is twelve per minute in 5-digit Spanish.
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The very same for 4-digit English and Spanish. The only exception
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I've noted in this cadence is in the live, or non-computer
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generated 5-digit Spanish transmissions.
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LADIES DAY AT THE A*C*E
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Traditionally, our hobby has been dominated by the male of the
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species. Look what we've been missing! Well it's time to put
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those days behind us, guys - because the female of the species
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has much to offer this hobby and profession.
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First - They look a hell of a lot better than we do.
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Second - Their skill at ferreting out numbers transmissions
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is unparalleled.
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Third - They just don't get involved in the stupid in-fighting
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that so many of us 'self-proclaimed experts' so often
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find ourselves mixed up in. More on in-fighting in
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a later edition of The A*C*E.
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Now I am fully aware that my stance on this issue will result
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in a hasty - and as usual, ill-prepared - meeting of NOG
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(National Organization of Guys) to immediately nish HM from
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saiorganization for ever and ever, amen.
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B that's okay, guys. I'm sure that NOW (Nation Organiza-
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tion of Women), while perhaps skeptical at first, will eventually
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welcome me with open arms.
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And just fortarters, here are just a few of the things YLs
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have contributed to the hobby -
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. Potato-Chip, a DC-basedemme, who joins us every Saturday
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night on-line, is well versed in the ins and ts of the
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ECPA.
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. Ira's Mom - w has her own shortwave radio (which she does
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NOT share with Ira) - indicates that she s discovered a
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relationship between Radio Havana Cuba and some few Numbers
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transmissions. How about sharing the info, Mom?!
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. Thyss - a California-based YL who also joins us on Saturday
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nights. Though only a beginner, she soaks up knowledge
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aster than one of Rosie's paper towels!
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. And lest we forget - there's the highly esteemed Lani Petit,
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whose shoes I am now attempting to fill. Where are you
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Lani? The high heels are bothering my feet - and the guys
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at NOG are giving me a rough time.
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. There are Pop'Comm's maven of Radio Nostalgia, Alice
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Brannigan, Monitoring Times' Gayle Van Horn and Jean
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Baker and Sharon Churcher and Trudy Miller of Penthouse.
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. There's Linda Reneau (KA1UKM) and Joyce Sawtelle of 73
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Amateur Radio Magazine and Carol Johnson of Portal Communi-
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cations.
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. And then there's the indefatigable Kristin Kaye - of "Bits,
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Bytes & BBSs - who has lots and lots of the shadowy types who
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lurk about the Virginia countryside in a tizzy!
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Let's welcome them with open arms, guys - no pun intended,
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of course!
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AND NOW . . . Since this is Ladies Day At The A*C*E, reception
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reports, for the most part, will be those of Kristin Kaye,
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of UeL fame (UeL - no relationship to PTL) - with an emphasis
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on Slavic (?) Numbers transmissions - preceded by musical tones.
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4032 kHz 0600 UTC AM 5-D Slavic kk/NY
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4881 kHz 0000 UTC AM 5-D Slavic kk/NY
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0100
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0200
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0300
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0500
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0530
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0600 (This parallel to 4032 kHz transmission above)
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1900
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2100
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2200
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To my knowledge, no one has ever positively identified this
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language. Probably not Russian, says kk - no guttural sounds -
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Czech? Serbo-Croatian? We're just not sure. Give a listen -
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this one is there practically every hour on the hour through
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the day and night. Given propagation issues this one is very
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curious, indeed.
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RACING WITH THE MOON
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John Fulford of FL and Zel Eaton of MO report Numbers trans-
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missions in the 32 MHz range. Some years back, Numbers trans-
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missions were reported in the 40 MHz range. I reported this
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in very small detail in "Uno, Dos, Cuatro."
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Strange things happening these evenings on 6840 kHz. Maintain
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a close watch. 6802 kHz, after a long absence, once again
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active, and don't forget the mystery of 6835 kHz - shared by
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Air Force 1, Air Force 2, 5-D Spanish Numbers, and now - by
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a major electronics manufacturer which has just been granted
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an experimental license for this frequency. Talk about
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strange bedfellows . . .
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HM's ELECTRONIC RECEPTION REPORT
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To: HAVANAMOON
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From: John Brewer
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Subject: Numbers Intercepts
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Date: Sat, 23-Dec-89 08:37:52 PST
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Lines: 45
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Date Time Freq/Mode Comments
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---------------------------------------------------------------------
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15 DEC Z 0145z 6.824.8 AM YL #s, interesting because of the fact
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that another YL station (#s), was
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either mixing with, or being transmit-
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ted from the background. The station
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appeared to have a different YL "voice"
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and different numbers being "read."
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Both stations disappeared after the
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"primary" YL station left the air.
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Format was "Atencion, Atencion,
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Atencion" followed by #s groups,
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{ repeated, then numbers groups till
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end of transmission.
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CONTRIBUTORS CORNER
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John Fulford (WA4VPY), Zel Eaton, Jim Vickonoff, Ira Martin,
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Ira's Mom, Don Bishop, Mark Pierce, John Brewer and Kristin
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Kaye.
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HAVANA MOON'S COSMIC SPOTLIGHT
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This month's Cosmic Spotlight shines on Ira's Mom. Mom will be
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receiving a one-year subscription to Electronics Handbook, pub-
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lished by C&E Hobby Handbooks, courtesy of Havana Moon and "Los
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Numeros."
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Next month's winner - to be selected at random, of course - will be
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the recipient of an original tape recording of one of the most
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unusual radio intercepts I have ever heard. More about that below!
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Get those intercepts in!
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* * * * * * * * * *
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There's been a truly peculiar transmission moving about the spect-
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rum lately, best described as a "Foghorn". Well, could it be that
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the "Foghorn" is a new and sophisticated jamming device?
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One recent Saturday Night while "Numbers Chasing" with the Amigas
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on "Los Numeros" we came across the "Foghorn" on 7920 kHz at 0500
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UTC. Signal strength was very powerful, ranging from well over S9
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at my QTH to S7-S8 on the West Coast. And that's not all.
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Underneath the "Foghorn" was a PAB (phonetic alphabet station)
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transmitting five character phonetic groups! I noted the signal
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strength of the Numbers Station to be around S7. Reception was
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extremely weak in San Diego, and not heard at all in San Jose.
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This (these) transmissions continued until approximately 0540 UTC.
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After the phonetic transmission ended, the "Foghorn" continued to
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transmit.
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The phonetic groups were broadcast by a YL using the standard inter-
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national phonetic alphabet but with decidedly non-standard pronuncia-
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tion.
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Example: LEE-MAH (Lima) NO-VEM-BEER (November)
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EEN-DI-YAH (India) U-NEE-FORM (Uniform)
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Use of non-standard pronunciation is an indication that the receive-
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site may use a voice-recognition system.
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Back to the "Foghorn" - it was later found jamming 6925.5 kHz, a
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known KKN50 frequency. It was learned the following day that a
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complaint was filed by the State Department as a result of this
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interference.
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A new form of jammer? Who? And why? Any thoughts?
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An interesting sideline from Harry Helms - Harry says KKN50's
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marker transmission was greatly enhanced by this mysterious "Fog-
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horn" with nomadic tendencies. Any ideas, folks? It's got the
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self-appointed experts confused - this, much to their chagrin!
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And if you think this group is confused, you ought to see the
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tizzy the professionals are in . . .
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HAVANA MOON's PREDICTIONS FOR 1990
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Ira Martin will become romantically linked to a world-famous
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female rock star. This will lead to Mr. Martin's photo being
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plastered on the front page of many issues of The National
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Inquirer.
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Harry Helms sightings will become more frequent than Elvis sight-
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ings as he is seen scouring McDonald's dumpsters
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* for Covert Corner material. I beg of you, folks -
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don't let this happen. YOU're in control. Get Harry some
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reports before he has to move on to Burger King!
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The first Numbers transmission reception report received via a
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tooth filling will be logged by The A*C*E. The sender of this
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report will immediately receive a crushed and empty Tecate can.
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Contents of said can will have been disposed of in HM's own
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unique style (hic).
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John Fulford will get his check or money order off to The
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A*C*E for a membership - provided he is not molested by any more
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Mafia Dons.
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Ira's Mom will set The A*C*E record for Numbers reception reports
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while her son frolics on the Riviera with the above mentioned YL.
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And last - but certainly not least - Ed Anger, of Weekly World
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News fame - will be verbally attacked by Andre Provacateur. Look
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out Ed - Provacateur's World has no room for you! And you're
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going to be madder than Fred the Fed with no E-Mail system to
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invade! And if you haven't yet picked up a copy of The Weekly World
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News - don't start now!
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* * * * * * * * * *
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Well, folks - the intercept database is ready for distribution.
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It'll be available in two formats - one print-out by time, and
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another by frequency. And for you Commodore users out there,
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a diskette-version will be made available at a later time, if
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demand warrants.
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Here's what you'll need to do: Send a check or money order in
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the amount of $3.00 made payable to The A*C*E to the Club post
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office box. Include a stamped, self-addressed #10 envelope with
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your request. PLEASE - no requests to my Chicago address
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directly. Distribution methods will be worked
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out with Kirk.
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I'll assume all costs so that the entire $3.00 will go to The
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A*C*E Treasury.
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The first run is now in its final stages, and barring any unfor-
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seen computer snafus, will be ready a week to ten days after this
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issue of The A*C*E reaches you.
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* * * * * * * * * *
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HAVANA MOON RECOMMENDS
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If you haven't done so already - be sure to pick up a copy of the
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February, 1990 edition of Popular Communications Magazine, and
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join me and John Fulford, for a "Magical Mystery Tour" of Miami's
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mysterious KKN39. See it as a "KKN Station" has never before
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been seen. And I mean that quite literally, folks!
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And contact Grove Enterprises for shipping and pricing information
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about the all new "Shortwave Directory." This 1990 edition contains
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a new and revised Numbers section, courtesy of Yours Truly.
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George Zeller's 1990 edition of "The Pirate Directory" - soon to be
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available from Tiare Publications.
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* * * * * * * * * *
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Special thanks to "Fred the Fed", The "Los Numeros" On-Line Amigas,
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and Olivier Schmidt of The Intelligence Newsletter for a recent
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profile of HM and Harry Helms. Thanks, also, to Sweden Calling
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DX'ers, Fred Maia's W5YI Report and Wayne Green of 73 Amateur
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Radio Magazine for recent mentions of "Los Numeros" and Portal
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Communications.
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Hope to see all of YOU on "Los Numeros" soon. And by the way,
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you'll find The A*C*E Digest and Veried Response there - courtesy
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of Kirk Baxter and John Arthur!
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And don't forget, guys - introduce a YL to the hobby. You'll be
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glad you did. And as the legendary Gene Nobles, of WLAC fame
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used to say - "Titillate your sensibilities."
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We miss you - somewhere in time, Gene. And as far as you guys at
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NOG are concerned, you can . . .
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See you at the Denny's on the Beach. Time now for a Tecate and . . .
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On second thought, folks, I just might give up Tecate. You see,
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while on the patio just now, I saw a huge, furry creature with
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beady eyes running up and down my Cable TV line - I just may
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switch to Kool-Aid - SharkleBerry Fin . . .
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Havana Moon y Amigas
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33469
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=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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(C) Copyright, 1990, MoonBeam Press. All Rights Reserved.
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This column initially appeared in the 1/90 Edition of The A*C*E
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Bulletin, a monthly publication of The Association of Clandestine
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Radio Enthusiasts. For more information, write to PO Box 11201,
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Shawnee Mission, KS 66207. Sample copies $1.50.
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=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=
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