Passed by what's left of the old HF radio base in the Keys while on vacation. Nothing is left but the road, some old buildings and the power/signal poles.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/2...1.592132,237m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x0

https://www.google.com/maps/place/2....6725006,949m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x0

 

Nice hover board! Very cool.

 

Nice hover board! Very cool.

The Google Street view of the air-base fence road shows the base back-gate we had the keys to. That made it nice for unofficial deliveries (of party supplies) late at night.
https://www.google.com/maps/place/2...sZiJvIfBhZOE4YOZuKlhiOg!2e0!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x0

 

Is it basically all satellite now, nsaspook?

 

Is it basically all satellite now, nsaspook?

I ran UHF/SHF satellite networks in the 70s so the basic technology was there but the bandwidth and transponder availability was limited to high priority circuits. HF/UHF is still used but the bulk of mundane data transmission is now fiber instead of audio land-lines/long distance HF radio links for land based communications with satellite handling most ship based data transmission in friendly areas so that reduced the requirement for a massive HF infrastructure.

Most of the modern HF equipment is IP based and computer controlled so the manual system setup and operation we did is a thing of the past.
http://www.hfindustry.com/meetings_...ations/05_MAHAN_0111HFIAUSNavyStatusFinal.pdf

Patches, etc : http://www.navy-radio.com/misc.htm

Mine

 

I see. I forgot that lot of trafic goes through fiber landlines nowadays.

Just little before I quitted (merchant) vessels, some 23 years ago, satellite started to take over and soon, radio officers disappeared completely. In high seas, to call Owners I had to get a communication through an HF station and depending of many things wait for our turn, maybe up to one hour or more. Yes, that was long time ago. ¡Oh sí!

 

Were you ever on Swan Is?

 

Passed by what's left of the old HF radio base in the Keys while on vacation. Nothing is left but the road, some old buildings and the power/signal poles.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/24°37'49.2"N 81°35'27.9"W/@24.6302362,-81.592132,237m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x0

https://www.google.com/maps/place/24°33'59.1"N 81°40'21.0"W/@24.5664081,-81.6725006,949m/data=!3m1!1e3!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0x0

Alas...so many wonderful historic coastal stations going QRT. I got to visit the Pt. Reyes CW station a while back. I think its days are numbered too.

 

It was a good 107 years. HF communications is not going away but the old mainly analog methods of modulation and networking are quickly being replace with methods that are efficient for digital HF packet switching networks. Most of the old facility equipment just couldn't handle the technical requirements without restarting from scratch.
Page 11
http://www.public.navy.mil/fltfor/cyberfor/Documents/Fall Edition 2012_WEB.pdf