Mount Evelyn DX Report: THE ISSOUDUN TRANSMITTER SITE

"06issoudun alliss Gange" by David Gestalder - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

THE ISSOUDUN TRANSMITTER SITE

1993 VIDEO

While Radio France International has closed down many of its transmitter sites around the world, one powerful facility remains. Radiating a signal strength that most other major shortwave broadcasters can only admire, the RFI site at Issoudun is very much active with its own transmissions, as well as providing relay services for other broadcasters like Radio Japan, KBS World Radio, Radio Algerienne, WRMI, VOA Deera Radio, Adventist World Radio, Deutsche Welle, Bible Voice, and a host of other smaller organisations. Its transmitters operate with power outputs from anywhere between 100 to 500 kW. The massive rotatable towers were state-of-the-art design and technology when construction began on the site in 1993.

Recently, I discovered an eight-minute video (below) that appears to have been hidden away on the Internet for some time now. Produced by RFI, it shows the Issoudun rotating Alliss antennas in various phases of construction. The video and audio quality are somewhat scratchy, but the viewer can observe the huge scale of the building project undertaken by the broadcaster. The commentary is in French, but you'll get the idea from the visuals.

Interesting viewing! I hope you enjoy it.

SIDE NOTE: ALLISS is a fully rotatable antenna system for high power shortwave radio broadcasting in the 6 MHz to 26 MHz range. An ALLISS module is a self-contained shortwave relay station that is used for international broadcasting. You can read more about this amazing system at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ALLISS

73 and have a great weekend everyone!

Rob Wagner VK3BVW

VIDEO:

R.F.I Construction des antennes Alliss à... by lagon54

"05issoudun alliss Volga" by David Gestalder - Own work. Licensed under CC BY 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

ISSOUDUN - Home to RFI for many years!
Here's a QSL from the early days days of the Issoudun transmitter site - October 1971, and long before the rotatable Alliss antennas were built. In those days, RFI was known as Office de Radiodiffusion Télévision Française (ORTF).