Recent Radio Developments in Europe
An outline map of the European country of Romania, 430 miles long and 320 miles wide, presents the shape of a very irregular circle. Or perhaps, as Google Maps presents Romania, it is formed in the shape of a (Dory) Fish swimming westward.
Romania in Eastern Europe is a land of rugged mountains and verdant plains, multiple river systems and natural forests, modern cities and country villages. The total population is twenty million and the capital city is Bucharest, with its interwoven architectural display of historic edifices, communist era buildings, and modern commercial structures. Romania attracts anywhere up to twenty million tourists a year.
Throughout the centuries, Romania has undergone more than its share of internal and international turmoil. The earliest migrations brought the arrival of ancient Europeans, the Greeks established their colonies, and the Roman armies brought their Latin dialects to the area, from which the modern Romanian language is descendant. On the religious scene, Romania has undergone the influence of early Christianity, Catholicism, Orthodoxy and Islam, and on the political scene, communism and independence.
Wireless came to Romania quite early, and a 1913 list shows a maritime longwave station at oceanside Constantza on 600 metres (500 kHz) under the self-chosen callsign KST. Station KST was the coastal shore station for a fleet of half a dozen ships in the nearby Black Sea, all of which were operating on the same frequency (500 kHz) though each was operating under its own irregular callsign.
Eleven years later (1924), there were two dozen longwave stations throughout Romania, half of which were installed in various areas of the capital city, Bucharest. By this time, regularized callsigns were in use, with the first two letters CV indicating Romania, followed by two more letters that indicated each specific station. As an example, station CVOB was a civil aviation transmitter located at suburban Baneasa (ba-NAH-sa).
A perusal of the new 2023 WR(TV)HB indicates that there is currently a multitude of FM stations throughout Romania, too many to count. A current list of mediumwave stations in Romania presents a surprising total of many mediumwave stations still on the air in Romania, almost 50 of which were provided by the Harris manufactory in Quincy Illinois in the United States.
Current information also indicates that Radiocom in Romania plans to install five more mediumwave replacement transmitters which is a clear indication that mediumwave radio is still viable throughout that nation. The five new facilities will be installed at:
Bucharest: 25 kW on 603 kHz
Constant{s}a: 100 kW on 1458 kHz, 50 kW on 1314 kHz, 25 kW on 909 kHz
Oradea: 50 kW on also 603 kHz
Adrian Peterson, IN, script for AWR Wavescan April 30, 2023 via WOR iog (2023-04-11)
