I would very much like to understand how the RAF assigned frequencies and how they were used during WW2, particularly by Bomber Command. I have my father's pilot training notes but they don't really cover the detail. Were freqs changed daily, were they allocated to Sqns or airfields, did callsigns change reqularly...? Where were the ground facilities located - per Sqn, per airfield or under a larger oganisation? Lots of questions!
I am trying to build a picture of how comms were conducted during say a 1000-bomber raid, particularly on return to the airfields, which I'm guessing would have been very busy on-air at times. I presume aircraft Tx freq click-stops were all set up using wavemeters or similar prior to departure...?
Does anyone have more information please? Or could anyone point me at any possible resources where this detail could perhaps be found?
While reading through the records for the HGCU at Brize Norton it mentions a couple of times frequencies (in mega cycles) for ground control but also the 23 Group frequency and a couple of others for specific nearby airfields.
I guess like modern ATC different freqs, for airfield, sector, etc. but can't enlighten more than that.
Quite a number of mentions of frequencies in RAF Signals 1939-1945
Following the Cairo conference there was a conference at the AM re-allocated frequencies to provide 400 channels ay 10 to 20 KHz separation.
Bomber Command. Stations divided into six sections, each having a control station which operated a regional area guard DF and RT frequency and each station having two squadron frequencies and a station DF frequency - these between 3000 and 4500 KHz.
In Coastal Command, each station had one or more squadron operational waves and each station ultimately had a HF DF. In addition there were group reconnaissance waves, training waves and waves for marine craft and for inter-communications between services.
Fighter Command had four RT channels per sector with 20 KHz separation
Quite a lot more though much about overseas comms. Interesting list of the WT Standby Point To Point Organisation which includes most RAF sites including non-airfield sites like Fauld and Llanberis.
If anyone wants to wade through the Tarrant Rushton ORBs on my Tarrant page there are mentions in there of HF frequencies. I'd do it myself but I am off out on a date very shortly!
FWIW according to the Tarrant ORB , 116.1mhz was the guard freq worldwide in 1946(That was DSB-AM- Amplitude Modulation). It also seems from recently received info that in 1947 the World Radio Conference and ICAO adopted the basis of current system(118-132Mhz later expanded to 136, then 137mhz) for en route/ local traffic/Approach/Tower etc..while HF was retained for long distance comms (much as now ).
Initially Mil Coms were above 138mhz...and in the 70s the 225-400UHF band came fully into use(Still AM)(HaveQuick with the USAF).
HF continues to be widely used for long distance coms - all voice is now USB/J3E(the last AM station was I believe one of the Greenland or Icelandic stations - still AM into the 90s)
Allocations of frequency/band space run from 2.8mhz to 23.5 (Civil -usually 3khz "channels") similar for Mil.....Selcal is widely used using H2B mode.
A couple of T-R freqs .. all for mid 1946
[FONT=&]HF/DF 6500/3805 KC/S..
App on 4200Khz.
Homer on VHF using T1131 TX
Hope this is useful to someone.
If anyone has any info on frequencies used at Christchurch (Hants later Dorset) at any time I would be very interested.
Dont forget there was no real form of ATC service in wwii. Yes you had a tower but that was really it, no approach radar, no talk down and no area radar. And everyone coped!
Dont forget there was no real form of ATC service in wwii. Yes you had a tower but that was really it, no approach radar, no talk down and no area radar. And everyone coped!
They introduced Flying Control centres for controlling flights to and from Europe, and around Europe, after D-Day. I suppose the similarly the monitoring of transatlantic flights was the forerunner of Prestwick Oceanic.
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