QSLs FROM THE PAST

QSLs FROM THE PAST - Part 1 - Comoro Islands

April 18, 2014

PART 1 INTRODUCTION

Many of the MEDXR blog readers are interested in QSL cards, and some also enjoy viewing old cards and letters from years gone by. As you may know, I no longer maintain an interest in QSLs.....I'm not sure why! After having returned to the hobby (....again) over the past 18 months, I have sent out a handful of reception reports, received QSLs and then I've wondered to myself "Well now....what am I going to do with these??!!!"

As the great Blues singer/guitarist B. B. King entitled one of his songs, "The Thrill is Gone!" It certainly was there once, and the fascination lasted for many years. I collected hundreds of QSLs from most countries around the world, and many were received from small, domestic broadcasters who no longer exist.

But those days have indeed passed for me. Now, my enjoyment comes from listening, monitoring, watching the movements of international broadcasters, logging the hard-to-hear smaller domestic stations and Latin American DX, observing the vagaries of shortwave propagation, and noting the annual changes in the SW bands just as we do the changes in the seasons. Also, I still communicate with SW broadcasters to give them feedback on their reception, programming, etc. If I use the service, then I should let the broadcaster know that I do…..without necessarily asking for a QSL…..or as one of my colleagues is fond of saying (with tongue-in-cheek) "Gimme QSL!!"

However, I also recognise that for many DXers, the collection of radio verifications is a very important part of the hobby for them. I do enjoy hearing the news when others proudly add to their growing collections of cards and letters. Well done to you!

Something you may not know, but I will share with you here......many of my QSLs (the really good ones) are now in the hands of other radio enthusiasts and collectors. They are the custodians of much of my collection. Hopefully, they are looking after and valuing these pieces of history better than I once did!

But before passing on this memorabilia to others, I did make scanned copies so that I could retain a digital record of my early DX achievements. Over the next few months, I will be featuring some of these QSLs in the MEDXR Blog. I hope you enjoy reading about and looking at these QSLs.

COMORO ISLANDS

It was quite early in my DXing "career" that I first heard the ORTF station in Moroni, capital of the Comoro Islands. Being off the coast of Eastern Africa, the station could be heard in our very early mornings from around 1630 hours on 3331 kHz. Programming was in French and, of course, the music programs provided wonderful listening.

At the time, the islands were still under French rule (it was an overseas territory of France from 1946). However, a referendum on self-determination was conducted by France in 1974, and in 1975 independence was declared, with the new country being known as the Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoro Islands. Interestingly, there was one island in the archipelago, Mayotte, that voted to remain with France. Since 1997 there have been many political rumblings between the islands, and since 2001 the country has changed its name to The Union of the Comoros. Today, the islands remain amongst the poorest countries in the world and rely heavily on agriculture for economic survival. Population-wise, it is also one of the smallest with less than 1 million people. However, due to a small landmass, population density is one of the highest in the world!

This verification is for reception on September 22, 1971 between 1756 and 1840 UTC on 3331 kHz. According to the logbook, I noted programming in both French and a local language. This was probably Comorian - one of the east African Bantu languages, but with Arabic influences. On that occasion, the SINPO code was 33443, indicating overall fair reception. The station operated from a 4 kW transmitter. The QSL arrived by airmail in three weeks for a French reception report and 1 IRC.

Apparently the snails in my letterbox had got to the envelope as the edges were nibbled!