Communications

The Berg Field Centre at McMurdo provided us with a Southcom International Inc. Patrolfone Model SC-120, the radio usually supplied to USARP field parties. The radio was tested at Scott Base and again at Beardmore Camp before deployment in the field. K044 skedded with Beardmore Camp at 0730 hours on 4770 KHZ each day in the field with an optional 2100 hours sked at night. Beardmore relayed our field status to McMurdo Sideband each day. Communications with Scott Base were on 5400 KHZ on a casual basis, the Southcom normally being used when at Beardmore Camp due to poor aerial orientation of their main radio.

On our put-in to Granite Pillars on November 26 we were unable to make contact with any station on any frequency and were left with a AN/PRC-90 VHF radio. Joining bamboo poles together to elevate the aerial 10′ above the ground solved this problem and communications with all stations after this were excellent. On the night of December 5 in the Miller Range a violent southerly storm blew the radio off the kitchen box onto a primus and it ceased to function. The same storm shredded the aerial in numerous places and it was noticed that even on a new aerial with this braided wire construction that fraying and eventual breaking occurred much more frequently than aerials with plastic coating.

On day trips into the field an AN/PRC-90 VHF radio was taken for communications with helos. Our Southcom radio was returned to McMurdo Station for repair after the Miller Range trip and was then returned to Beardmore Camp for use by other parties.