Finnish Vintage Wireless Activity Day (”PRT”)
Finnish Radio Amateurs’ League (SRAL) have arranged twice a year an activity day for vintage radio stations.
There are two days to remember old wartime radio operators and the equipment they used. One is December 6th, Finland’s day of independence (Since 1917) and June 4th, Finnish Defence Forces’ Day. June 4th is the birthday of Marshall C. G. E. Mannerheim. (1867 – 1951) About fourty vintage radio stations have been active during previous occasions. Mainly they use 80 meter band. Almost all stations are of types used in wartime (1939 – 1945) operations.
Both telegraph (”CW”) and phone (AM) contacts will be held. Radio amateurs from neighbourhood countries have participated, too. The activities are co-ordinated by different radio amateur clubs in Finland.
The vintage stations use special call sign ”S” like OH 2 XYZ/S.
The wartime radio stations mainly used frequency band 3 – 6 MHz. Some types of the stations could use 1,8 MHz and 7 MHz amateur bands, too.
The main types of radio equipment used by the Finnish Arny during WW II were:
– a specially built 0,3 W transceiver Kyynel (”Tear”), used behind the enemy lines for commando
tasks, battery driven, CW only
– factory – built 1,5 W portable transceiver VRFK, battery driven, CW and AM,
– factory – built 30 W fixed/portable (127 kg) transceiver VREH, mains or 12 V DC dynamotor
driven, CW and AM
– miscellanoeus other types like soviet agent radio CEBEP (”North”), Hungarian and German –
built portable stations.
Majority of these types as well as some U.S. built sets will be used for operation on 80 m band during the PRT Activity Day.
The allocation of operating frequencies will be available abt. 3 weeks before activity day.
More information on these topics:
– Vintage radio activities in Finland
– http://putkiradiomuseo.fi/pr/Perinneradio/CD.html. (in Finnish)