“Retro” HF Radio Promotes 21st Century CG Mission Readiness
Article and photos by John Umbarger, Division 13 (D13) Public Affairs Staff Officer, Kennewick, WA

Ken Beck and BMCS Jim Madsen with the HF radio base-station at ANT Kennewick, Clover Island, Kennewick, WA.

The missions of District 13 USCG Sector Portland and USCG ANT (Aids to Navigation team) Kennewick to maintain navigable waterways in Eastern Washington and Western Idaho depend on reliable patrol-level communications.  Yet the geography of the Columbia and Snake River systems in this area of responsibility (AOR) consist of hundreds of miles of gullies, ravines, steep-cliffs, and gorges that are all unsuitable to line-of-sight VHF radios.  

In the past, USCG patrols have made do through the use of cellular and satellite phones. Both have their limitations.  Cell phone coverage is spotty or non-existent in the upper river branches.  Satellite phone coverage is often limited by sheer cliff faces that can sharply rise hundreds of feet above the river and block communications satellites.

Ken Beck, the newly installed Communications Staff Officer for Flotilla 85 and soon to be Vice Flotilla Commander, thought there might be a better way.  Ken is an electronics expert who holds FCC commercial and Amateur Extra Class licenses.  He is a Global Maritime Distress and Safety System (GMDSS) maintainer/operator (including Ship Radar Endorsement). 

With his extensive background, Ken believed three decades old radio techniques known collectively as Near Vertical Incident Skywave (NVIS) might be of service.

Ken Beck with the HF radio mobile-station installed in one of ANT Kennewick's boats

With NVIS, high frequency (HF) transmissions are directed nearly straight upwards into the ionosphere, where they can be refracted and reflected nearly straight back down to earth.  Unlike typical HF that seeks long-distance communication, NVIS propagation provides a much shorter, but uniform communications radius.  By using NVIS, HF radio can be used tactically in a limited AOR of 25-250 miles range, overcoming earth-bound barriers of mountains, valleys, and deep river gorges.  This adds an important element to communications in situations where line-of-sight VHF radios, cell phones, or satellite-based phones prove insufficient.

On a visit to ANT Kennewick last February by CDR Russ Proctor (from Sector Portland), Ken successfully demonstrated NVIS and discussed how it might operate on inland waterways.  CDR Proctor was impressed and the effort was begun to develop a parts list to equip ANT Kennewick with two state-of-the-art Marine HF radios.  This allowed for one to be used as a base station while the other could be used by a patrol boat on missions. This would fully test the applicability of NVIS to the AOR.

Under Senior Chief Jim Madsen at ANT Kennewick, the equipment was installed and recently tested on the Columbia’s Lake Roosevelt, and Upper Snake River.  Good signals were established, and only improved as both line-of-sight and cellular communication diminished.

As CDR Proctor says, “…this certainly appears to be a logical & viable solution to our chronic problem of limited communications capability in Sector Portland's eastern AOR.  The USCG Auxiliary HF program certainly deserves Sector/Regional/District ‘Silver & Gold’ support for continued growth and operability, to enhance our routine ops, planned surge events and contingency (COOP) preparedness.”

Ken Beck Receives USCG Commandant’s Achievement Metal , USCG BMCS James Madsen (left) and BM1 Toby VanWormer (right).

In thanking Ken for his particular role in the successful NVIS test by his unit, Senior Chief Madsen commented, “Ken, you are indeed a great asset and much appreciated. Thanks again for all you have done for us.  Your efforts will not go unrecognized.”

On Tuesday evening, December 11, at the Clover Island Inn at the annual USCG Auxiliary Flotilla 85 Change of Watch ceremony Coast Guard personnelof the Clover Island based Aids to Navigation Team (ANT) Kennewick, presented newly installed Flotilla 85 Vice Commander Ken Beck with the USCG Commandant’s Achievement Medal. 

CITATION (in part): This award is in recognition of Beck’s superior performance in direct support of the Coast Guard’s safety and security missions in this region.  Beck developed, designed, and facilitated the procurement and installation of new “Hi-Frequency - Near Vertical Incident Skywave,” (HF-NVIS) radios and antennas that, for the first time, provide reliable communications across previously unreachable and long (130 mile) segments of both the Snake River and Lake Roosevelt/Spokane River in eastern Washington where normal marine VHF radios, cell phone, and even satellite radios often do not work.