FDNY Radio History - based on NYT articles

[zerg901]

FDNY Radio History - from NYT articles - 1 page of info

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(what the heck - lets just post the entire article here at Radio Ref)

FDNY Radio History from New York Times newspaper articles

June 28, 1930 - FDNY applies for radio license from FCC for 125 watt
base station at Empire Blvd at Washington Ave in Brooklyn on 1596
kilocycles

Aug 31, 1936 - 9 fireboats will get 2 way radios funded by $30,000 in
the 1936 FDNY budget - the radio base station will be at Long Island
City - radio receiver sites will be at north end of Staten Island,
Brooklyn Museum, high school in northern Manhattan, and the Municipal
Building - 35 fire department cars also might receive the radios - no
radio frequency has been allocated by the FCC yet

Feb 25, 1949 - FDNY orders first 2 way portable radios - $250 each -
applied for FCC license - crystal controlled radios - delivery within
45 days - primary use will be for inside bld to outside bld comms

Oct 30, 1949 - FDNY will soon utilize a new $250,000 radio system on
150 mhz to 160 mhz - this band has only been used by the Federal
Government previously - presently FDNY uses non exclusive shortwave
radio channels on 200 megacycles (???) - units on West Side Highway
would be confused by calls meant for eastern New Jersey fire units -
each borough will have its own channel - a 6th channel will be used
citywide - radio bases will be located at Bronx Park, Empire Blvd at
Prospect Park in Brooklyn, Forest Park in Queens, Borough Hall on
Staten Island, and Central Park in Manhattan - International Telephone
and Telegraph, Motorola, and General Electric will be involved - all
sizeable fire apparatus will have radios - previously just the
commissioner, fire boats, chiefs, and special units had radios

Feb 3, 1952 - new FM radio system is 95% completed - based on 1950
contract for $586,000 - 5 bases and 500 two way mobiles - in 1951 the
new two way radios were installed in engines, ladders, and chiefs in
Brooklyn, Queens, and Richmond - in 1951 in Manhattan and Bronx just
the Chiefs got the new radios

March 1, 1953 - new radio system dedicated at 83-98 Woodhaven Blvd,
Forest Park - all apparatus have radios now

March 3, 1953 - dedicated new citywide radio system - Motorola -
$586,000 - replaces system in use since 1937 - photo shows portable
radio which is the size of a small suitcase on a shoulder strap (radio
appears to extend from ribs to thigh and is larger than the lunchbox
size I have seen in other photos from other agencies - ps)

April 20, 1956 - FDNY has placed a mobile command post in service -
based at Engine 66, it is staffed by 1 Lieutenant and 2 firefighters -
there are 7 mobile radios on board - photo shows 2 standing
firefighters with 7 handsets mounted over their heads - unit responds
on all ?2nd alarms and ? some first alarms - plan for 2nd unit in 6
months - first HTs were used in 1938 but they fell out of use during
WW2 because (?hard to purchase?)

Oct 19, 1963 - Elizabeth NJ sold 153.77 to NYC for $42,000 and another
radio channel - the money will be used to purchase modern radios for
Elizabeth FD - 153.77 is close to existing FDNY radio channels - (I
suspect that Elizabeth got 166.25 or 170.15 in the deal - ps)

Oct 11, 1969 - FDNY is purchasing 1,055 small portable radios (HT) -
27 ounces - 6 channels - Motorola is the only provider of such radios
- $978 each - 7 inches high by 3 inches wide by 1.5 inches thick -
will be carried on Sam Browne style belt - the FDNY radios are smaller
than HTs recently tested in Brooklyn by NYPD - FDNY will have 3 HT per
Ladder and 2 per Engines, Rescue, Squad, and Chief - 100 HTs will be
in reserve - presently FDNY has 250 older bulky HTs mostly for
officers

March 22, 2001 - FDNY pulls $5M worth of digital radios from service

Aug 7, 2001 - FDNY will reprogram digital radios

(there are a few more articles concerning 2001 era news - fire union
complained about radios - interop was increased - etc)

note - 1953 - price jumped from 250k to 586k

 

[Randyk4661]

It's amazing how far radios have come in less than 100 years. 1500-1800 kilohertz to well into the gigahertz ranges.
And yet there is still the problems of having clear communications for all types of situations involving buildings.
I've never been to NYC, but seeing how Los Angeles deals with the high rise communication problems, NYC must be a radio nightmare.

 

[ten13]

For the first number of years of radios in the FDNY, Manhattan and the Bronx operated on the same frequency (154.25...with no PL), as did Brooklyn and Queens (154.37). Staten Island was on their own frequency (154.19)

Come the late-1960, early-1970s ,it was finally decided that this two boroughs on one frequency could not work anymore because it was way too busy (especially for Manhattan and the Bronx, since Manhattan, with Harlem and the Lower East Side, could be just as busy some nights). The Bronx was switched over to operate with Staten Island, since, geographically (and demographically) they were miles apart. That worked fairly well...until brush fire season, when S.I. was as busy as the Bronx.

At some point, someone in the Radio Shops took their feet off the desk and said, hey...maybe if we put different PLs in the Bronx and S.I. radios, it would work better! It did work "better," but still shouldn't have been done that way.

Queens got their own frequency (154.40), and Brooklyn stayed on 154.37. And Citywide was on their own (154.43)

 

[zerg901]

a little more info

RADIO - FDNY FDNY - the 1982 item has the 6 channel lineup for the FDNY HTs

ten13 do you know if FDNY always used repeaters/mixers on 154.25, 154.37, and 154.19? Or did they operate in simplex mode at some point?

 

[62Truck]

It's amazing how far radios have come in less than 100 years. 1500-1800 kilohertz to well into the gigahertz ranges.
And yet there is still the problems of having clear communications for all types of situations involving buildings.
I've never been to NYC, but seeing how Los Angeles deals with the high rise communication problems, NYC must be a radio nightmare.

NYC building code requires radio amplification, as well as the antenna and cabling infrastructure to provide essential life safety communication capabilities. Each building to which the code is applicable must be certified as able to provide quality FDNY two-way radio communication over 97% of the building’s floor space.

 

[ten13]

ten13 do you know if FDNY always used repeaters/mixers on 154.25, 154.37, and 154.19? Or did they operate in simplex mode at some point?

The FDNY never used a repeater system, and has always used (including today) a "mixer" system, on all frequencies, where the incoming signal from the units is "mixed" and sent out via the same transmitter the Dispatcher uses. The Dispatcher essentially maintains control over what goes out over the airways.

Before cell phones, this allowed for field units to transmit critical or sensitive information to the Dispatcher for notifications, etc., with the long famous line of "Mixer off..." from the field unit.

 

[Archie]

How could there be 6 channels in the 1969 HT's which only had the capability for F1 and F2 ??

 

[GTR8000]

How could there be 6 channels in the 1969 HT's which only had the capability for F1 and F2 ??

The HT-220, which was capable of up to 6 channels, was released in 1969.

 

[ff026]

The FDNY never used a repeater system, and has always used (including today) a "mixer" system, on all frequencies, where the incoming signal from the units is "mixed" and sent out via the same transmitter the Dispatcher uses. The Dispatcher essentially maintains control over what goes out over the airways.

Before cell phones, this allowed for field units to transmit critical or sensitive information to the Dispatcher for notifications, etc., with the long famous line of "Mixer off..." from the field unit.

It’s technically a voting comparator.

The dispatcher essentially “sets up/knocks down” the repeater using EAI tone remote control.

 

[zerg901]

1949 info - FDNY - 79th St Transverse Rd - callsign KEA 292 - 37.74 Mhz AM - 80 mobiles - and also - callsign WNYQ - 1630 KC AM

There must have been some changes between the 1930s and 1949 - WNYF might have been a callsign at 1 point also - need to do some more research

A little more fdny radio history here at An Oldie, But A Goodie

 

[AlexC]

The dispatcher essentially “sets up/knocks down” the repeater using EAI tone remote control.

...or MOSCAD/SDM contact closures.

 

[Ishmole]

The FDNY never used a repeater system, and has always used (including today) a "mixer" system, on all frequencies, where the incoming signal from the units is "mixed" and sent out via the same transmitter the Dispatcher uses. The Dispatcher essentially maintains control over what goes out over the airways.

Before cell phones, this allowed for field units to transmit critical or sensitive information to the Dispatcher for notifications, etc., with the long famous line of "Mixer off..." from the field unit.

I had forgotten about "mixer off"! Thanks!!