Tinker TACAMO

[canders2]

Anyone got any VHF/UHF freqs for VQ-3 and VQ-4 out of Tinker?

[cjrjr507]

Hi Canders2

Found VQ-3 & VQ-4 repeater frequencies on milaircomms.com/uhf_tinker.html .
I know the site is a bit outdated but can't hurt to try them. Maybe you know about these already.
Hope this is what your looking for. BTW, these are maintenance frequencies.

[canders2]

Yea, I saw that but as you said it is out of date.

[trainman111]

The E-6's at NAS Patuxent River use 311.0 and 310.15 (AM mode) everyday. I imagine that it's probably the same throughout all of VQ-4. Plug those in and see if you can hear them.

[canders2]

311 is used by several Air Force commandposts around the country. I've been doing lots of signal stalking and came up with one possiblity so far...312.1 The traffic was very brief and informal, it sounded like a plane talkng to maintenence about a problem they were having and the crew would be in to talk to them.

I know the E-3's here use their channels quite often all day, so it's kinda interesting that Tacamo is virtually unheard.

[Hooligan]

Originally Posted by canders2

311 is used by several Air Force commandposts around the country.

I know the E-3's here use their channels quite often all day, so it's kinda interesting that Tacamo is virtually unheard.

311.0 is a standard US STRATCOM channel, with 321.0 secondary, so in your neck of the woods, assuming you have a decent antenna you should hear EAMs & FDMs broadcast out on them by ABNCPs pretty regularly.

Try 328.80 as well.

You hear E-3s all day but not E-6Bs because E-6Bs have MILSTAR & because while Tinker is the SCW-1 home-plate, they usually fly out of Offutt, Pax River, & Travis detachments for operational missions.


Tim

[canders2]

Originally Posted by Hooligan

You hear E-3s all day but not E-6Bs because E-6Bs have MILSTAR & because while Tinker is the SCW-1 home-plate, they usually fly out of Offutt, Pax River, & Travis detachments for operational missions.


Tim

So even though they fly in and out of Tinker, they would be reporting to Offut as far as any routine radio traffic?

[Hooligan]

Originally Posted by canders2

So even though they fly in and out of Tinker, they would be reporting to Offut as far as any routine radio traffic?

A lot of the routine mission-related traffic goes back to US Strategic Command, which is at Offutt, but much of that traffic also gets routed to the SCW ONE Quarterdeck/Commsta center aboard Tinker, and any maintenance-related information which does or does not impact their mission status goes to their Maintenance Operations (Control) Center at Tinker too.

I mentioned MILSTAR in a prior post when I really meant to write the Northstar multiplexed wideband FM system, which provides the E-6B aircrew & battlestaff with clear & secure direct-dial POTS & DSN dialtone service over much of their normal CONUS operating areas, so instead of most aircraft where they have to get on HF/VHF/UHF & call their squadron ops on a discrete freq or contact them via phone patch, with Northstar, anyone on the plane can be contacted or make contact by a telephone.

You should certainly hear their regular ATC comms with KTIK & OKC ARTCC, you'll hear them passing EAMs & stuff on the UHF freqs I mentioned, and you'll probably catch some Iron Man & Shadow (& VQ-7 Roughnecks) stuff on either standalone nets or Tinker's base LMR. This year, they've picked-up a secondary, civil-support mission of being a deployable C3,I center for national disasters, etc. just like the E-4Bs so you might hear that sort of training-type comms or tests on federal/state/local public safety channels occasionally.


Tim

[canders2]

Yep...312.1 is Shadow Base!