The histore of longwave radio in Finland.
1927 Lahti
Finland’s longwave station was built in 1927 on what is now called ‘Radio Hill’ in Lahti. Two 150m tall masts were constructed that held a Marconi T antenna. The station was inaugurated on 22 April 1928 running a Telefunken 25kW transmitter on 197 kHz. The following year the power was raised to 40kW and the station moved to 167 kHz.The station moved frequency in 1934 to 166 kHz. In 1935 a new building was built with a new Marconi 150kW transmitter. After the second world war the station changed it’s frequency to 160 kHz. The transmitter was replaced in 1958 and ran 200kW. During it’s early years the station had to change frequency several times but settled in on 254 kHz in 1950. In 1978 regulations came about to standardise 9 kHz channel spacing on the AM longwave band so later as with many other longwave stations YLE moved to it’s final home of 252 kHz. On the 31st of May 1993 YLE ceased broadcasting on 252 kHz longwave and that was the end of longwave radio for Finland.
Lahti was not the only longwave radio station in Finland’s history. By 1939 Kuopio was transmitting on 253 kHz with 1kW and Joensuu on 310 kHz also with 1kW although technically by today’s designation it was 10 kHz outside the ‘longwave’ LF band.
Also in 1942 German troops founded ‘Soldatensender Lappland’ in Rovaniemi on 297 kHz with 20kW. It was said to be operating with 15kW during 1943.
The decline in longwave has continued with many countries citing the high costs of running this old technology. Today there are only six full-time broadcast radio stations on longwave being; Romania on 153 kHz, Morocco on 171 kHz, Iceland on 189 kHz, UK on 198 kHz, Poland on 225 kHz and Algeria on 252 kHz. Mongolia also broadcasts on a sporadic basis on 164, 209 and 227 kHz but is rarely heard in Europe. The former French station from Allouis on 162 kHz is now a time clock (a silent carrier can be heard on your radio). Iceland and the UK are due to close their longwave stations very soon but exact dates have not been given. Iceland plans to end it’s last longwave transmitter during this year of 2024. The UK had planned to end the 198 kHz service but it keeps getting a reprieve, sadly though it’s closure remains firmly on the BBC’s cards.
As we start small we realise this historic step towards reversing the decline. Longwave radio has great reach and can be heard many km away so we feel its relevance in the Arctic area. The return of longwave radio to Finland after 31 years is a historic moment so join us in this new venture as we begin very soon….
https://arcticradio.net/history-of-longwave
Mike Terry to Longwaveradiolistening iog (2024-09-19)
