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Military call signs
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Well, I don't believe there is ANYTHING illegal or immoral about posting
this; the information is readily available (both to you & me and the
Soviets), and if the military didn't want to be heard, they'd be encrypted
and/or use spread-spectrum or frequency hopping - they definitely would NOT
send in the clear.
For all you anti-freedom-of-anything people, here goes. Dontcha just
love America? This is precisely what makes us different (better), people!
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Upper side band is used almost exclusively, except for some LSB VIP
communications.
Skyking, Foxtrot, and EAM (Emergency Action Messages) appear to be related
to the status of nuclear defense forces (coded messages are passed via clear
voice). They are generally in one of two nets, SAC or GCCS (Global Command
and Control System).
MAC is Military Airlift Command. VIP planes generally are out of 89th
MAW (Military Airlift Wing).
Here are some of the more interesting (or common) callsigns. I'll assume
the meaning of some of the more common acronyms is obvious. Any of the "1"
callsigns signifying president aboard can be replaced with "2" for the VP.
In some cases, there are 2 callsigns with the same meaning; I show them on
the same line.
Callsign
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Acrobat - Andrews AFB
Agar + 2 digits - EC-135N (Flying Command Post)
Crown - White House Comm Agency
Dropkick - SAC HQ, Offutt AFB, NE
Electric - National Emergency Airborne Command Post
Edgy + digits, Sentry - AWACS, Tinker AFB, OK
Army 1 - Army helo with President
Exec 1 - Commercial flight with President
Exec 1F - Commercial flight with President's family
Fertile - SAGE/NORAD network center, Ft. Lee, VA
Fivespot, Fletcher - Commando unit designator
Flynest - Nuclear & Chem/Bio Warfare Disaster Team
Golden - General net Air->Ground for any TAC station
Goliath - NORAD, Duluth, MN
Hilda - MAC Command
Jolly + 2 digits - SAR (Search and Rescue) helo (not on mission)
King + 2 digits - SAR aircraft (not on mission)
Marine 1, Night Hawk - USMC helo with President
Mac + digits - MAC aircraft
Mainsail - General net Air->Ground for any GCCS station
Pedro + 2 digits, Save - Local rescue craft
Phantom - MAC, European Theater Control
Ringmaster - NORAD HQ, Cheyenne Mt., CO
SAM + digits - VIP mission
01 = foreign head of state
86971 = Secretary of State
86972 = National Security Advisor
Skybird - General net Air->Ground for any SAC station
Skyking - General net Ground->Air for any SAC station
Spar, Afkai + 2 digits - 89th MAW, VIP
Swan, Teal - Weather recon
Tonight - MAC Pacific Control
USAF + digits - Flights over foreign territories
3 letter word + 3 digits - Student on training mission
6 letter word + 1 digit - Combat training mission
3-5 letter word + 2 digits - SAC bomber or tanker
6-15 letter word or 2 words - SAC ground station
Abnormal 10 - SAMTEC, Vandenberg AFB
Abnormal 20 - SAMTEC, Wheeler AFB
Some frequencies (KHz):
SAC A (Alfa): 11243
SAC B (Bravo): 11220
SAC Q (Quebec): 6761 (very busy and probably easiest to hear regularly)
SAC YQ: 11408
GCCS 6750, 6753
NORAD 9723, 11141, 11441, 14894
SAMTEC 10780, 13218, 17248, 20390
It's easiest to find military traffic in the following ranges:
6700-6900, 8950-9020, 11100-11300, 13200-13300
VIP aircraft tend to be found in the 11 and 13 MHz ranges. Also, almost
all of the RTTY traffic is encrypted.
It may seem obvious, but if you take the spectrum (applies to VHF/UHF too),
eliminate the KNOWN frequencies (e.g. ham, broadcast, public service, marine),
what's left is generally what the military uses (although they can be found
almost anywhere).
Also, spy stations (e.g. "numbers" stations, RTTY) like to hide in the
skirts of a broadcast station signal, which makes them hard to find and
copy.
So, what does this mean to WASHBURN looks like a SAC ground station,
while ZEUS (correct spelling) and FRED look like either bombers or
tankers. ZEUS is almost certainly a bomber. Fred is a Flintstone.
Have Fun!
73
--
Mike Pflueger @ AG Communication Systems (formerly GTE Comm. Sys.), Phoenix, AZ
UUCP: {...!ames!ncar!noao!asuvax | uunet!zardoz!hrc | att}!gtephx!pfluegerm
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