DROWNED OUT?

Sun (Auckland), Volume II, Issue 565, 18 January 1929, Page 11

DROWNED OUT?

SHIP’S S.O.S. SIGNALS BROADCASTING BLAMED An allegation that the reply to a ship’s S.O.S. signals was drowned by broadcasting was made at the Board of Trade inquiry into the loss of the Carmarthenshire, in the Thames, on July .

The wireless operator's log was produced, and entries read as follow: “3.20 (G.M.T.). —Instructed by captain to send S.O.S. call. ‘Ship on fire off Long Beach, require assistance.’ ” “3.30.—Ca1l repeated. No reply received, stations working, but signals drowned by strong broadcasting programme.”

“3.30 till 4.15. —Call continuously repeated. No response whatever, though stations working, but difficult to read, signals completely drowned by broadcasting nearly all the while.” “5.0.—N0 response received, broadcasting completely drowning signals, except for short intervals.”

“There seems to be a doubt.” said a 8.8. C. official in an interview, “whether the interference complained of was an interference with the outgoing 5.0.5., or with the Incoming replies from shore stations. “If the former, then the wireless operator's report is incomprehensible. The 8.8. C. is allotted certain wave lengths, and other wave lengths are allotted to ships for wireless telegraphy. These wave lengths are separated. “Moreover, it is not understood how the operator situated at the point of transmission could decide whether the signals were interfered with by broadcasting.

“If it is a case of interference with the incoming replies, then it would seem that the fault lay with the ship’s receiving apparatus. In other words, that the receiver was insufficiently selective, and failed to separate the morse telegraphy of the shore station on one wave length from the broadcast telephony on a different wave length.”