Paul_Sengupta wrote:How many RAF stations have closed in the past couple of decades? How many frequencies has this freed up?
Very few because, as I said, many operated on 'NATO standard' frequencies and as the other frequencies are allocated to MOD(Air) they're held 'in reserve' for future use (provided they meet ITU criteria for DOC). Has Lyneham Radar 123.4 been re-allocated for instance?
Remember about 10 years ago when the Brize Radar frequency suddenly changed from 134.3 to 124.275? That was because 134.3 was allocated to MOD (Air) as an Area Radar frequency but not specifically to Brize, so when they wanted to allocate it to Swanwick Mil, they found to get a decent DOC for that unit, they had to allocate a different frequency to Brize. In fact I did hear that it shouldn't have been allocated to Brize in the first place, but way back in the '70s when they were about to open 'Cotswold Radar' (which was an Area Radar unit as well as LARS) at Brize, they needed a frequency in a hurry and found that MOD 'owned' 134.3 so without checking the DOC, it was given to Brize.
How true that is I don't know.
Also don't forget, Safetycom (135.475) , which many people in the LAA (then called PFA) and other organisations fought hard to get, was allocated for use in the vicinity of airfields which had no frequency allocated to them, but the RAF decided to use it as a 'general broadcast' frequency in the Scottish Highlands, a purpose for which it was never intended.