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Report #105 11/01/14

GOOGLE EARTH
I have continued my efforts to locate the four intercept stations built by the Soviets in Nicaragua. I thought I had spotted one, the one located in the vicinity of San Francisco, Nicaragua. However I can't be certain because I did not have an exact match with the photograph I have of that installation. I am looking on the Internet to see if I can find the coordinates that apply to the four photographs of those installations. If they are available it should then be possible to zero in on those locations and perhaps determine if it looks as if they are still in use.

INTELLIGENCE THREAT HANDBOOK
Although dated, this publication contains information that applies to present day situations. The document was published in April 1996 by the Operations Security Support Staff and revised in May 1996. The Handbook can be viewed at http://www.fas.org/irp/nsa/ioss/threat96/part00.htm

CUBAN COMMUNICATIONS
On 2 Oct new groups were sent on the H M01 1600 sked (11435 kHz) but on the 2100 sked they sent a previous set of groups that had an increase in the 5th digit of each group. Then on the 1800 sked (11635 kHz) there was a mix of Cuban cut numbers in CW with HM01 signals. The RDFT transmissions sounded like messed up CW. The 2000 sked (7554 kHz) should have been cut numbers in CW. Instead it was voice groups in LSB and at 2100 voice and CW were both present.
Frequently the CW callup is missing. They go right into the message text. How do the field agents know if the traffic is for them?
Regarding the CW transmissions, they often interchange the 8009 and 8135 kHz frequencies and HM01 often appears on skeds that should be for CW.
Extremely odd is the practice of frequently repeating groups from previous months. Dummy traffic?
In checking back to July, it turns out that 11-13 July had very poor receiving conditions. Numerous monitors reported they did not hear Cuban Communications during those dates.

LOGGINGS
   kHz Comments & Date/time of Intercept [DDHHMM]
10100 RTTY Prob DDK9 Hamburg Meteo 161831
10125 Two dashes repeated over & over. Poss HAM beacon 161826
10130 Repeating in CW W0ERE/B EM36 3WTS Prob HAM beacon 161830
12699 RTTY Poss HPP Panama 161832
12729.5 RTTY Poss FUB Paris, France 161833
12788 FAX Prob NMG USCG New Orleans, LA 161834
12916 CQ DE HLF QSX 12 MHZ K Seoul, S.K. in CW 161837
12935 CQ DE HLG QSX 12 MHZ K Seoul, S.K. in CW 161838
13088.5 OM/EE in USB w/Gulf of Mexico wx. Prob NMG USCG Chesapeake, VA 221614
13263 YL/EE in USB w Air wx for London 231810
14401 Two Brazilian HAMS chatting 231804

End of Report

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