| MARITIME RADIO STATIONS OF THE WORLD
Portishead
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THE FINAL FINAL FINAL
PORTISHEAD RADIO/GKA, the United Kingdom's long range radio station and one of the world's most famous names in the maritime communications field, closed at 1200z on Sunday 30th April 2000 ending 81 years of service. On Saturday 29th April a special Amateur Radio event had taken place with cross-band communications between the amateur stations and Portishead (which used it's GKB range of transmitters). On the 30th hourly announcements gave details of the final broadcast times. In the final hour a "private" message was heard being broadcast by an "old timer". On the radiotelephony bands the stations frequencies were once again being marked an elderly Post Office "circuit adjustment" recording. The final radiotelephony broadcast was made at 1200 GMT, first on 4383, 8764 and 12346kHz and then on 17245, 19755 and 22711khz. A final RTT broadcast transmitted automatically as 1201z. And finally a hand-keyed message was broadcast on CW on the stations GKB range of transmitters. |
