"Goliath" is a Navy very-low-frequency radio station that provides communication with submarines at distances of up to 4,000 kilometers.[1] It was originally built in 1943 in the German town of Calbe to coordinate the actions of German submarines; after the war it was taken to the USSR as a trophy, and since 1952 it has operated near the settlement of Druzhny in Kstovsky District, Nizhny Novgorod Region.[2] It is one of six high-power stationary VLF radio stations built in the USSR for communication with submarine fleets.[3]

History: From Calbe to Druzhny

The installation in Calbe, Germany, was built by the firms C. Lorenz AG and AEG using the labor of prisoners of war from nearby concentration camps.[2] After being captured by Soviet troops, the station was out of operation; in 1947 it was dismantled and shipped to the USSR.[2] The site for its reassembly was chosen with great care: the station's accuracy depended on the electrical properties of the soil, and the marshy ground in the floodplain of the Kudma River near Druzhny turned out to be identical to that in Germany.[4][3] Remoteness from the state border was also important. In 1952 the antenna was assembled at the new antenna field; its geometric dimensions and configuration remained unchanged.[3]

At the same time as the station was assembled, a military unit was built nearby to maintain it, and a park of Baltic pines was planted around it to conceal the facility from aerial observation.[4] These pines, which grow considerably taller than local species, had reached a height of 20 meters by the early 21st century and have become the settlement's only large green area.

Technical specifications

Visually, the radio station consists of 18 masts up to 150 meters high with guy-wire antennas; the masts are insulated from the ground and rest on small spheres.[2] The station operates in the 15–60 kHz range (in a later period, 15–30 kHz, with two sub-bands: 15–21 kHz and 21–30 kHz).[1] The power of the "Titan" transmitter is 2,000 kW; the nominal operating power of the output stage, which uses four GU-107AM tubes, is 600 kW, and the maximum is 1,000 kW.[3][1] The station's individual call sign is RJH99; alongside it, the network-wide call sign RDL is used, shared by all six Soviet/Russian VLF radio stations.[3]

Initially, the original tube transmitter was used, restored from surviving documentation. All six stations of the network can transmit simultaneously on several frequencies of a common grid (18.1, 18.9, 21.1, and 27.3 kHz), including synchronously, and can be used to broadcast standard-frequency and precise-time signals as part of the "Beta" service.[3]

Current status

After a two-year overhaul in 2001–2003, the station was returned to service and continues to operate as a military facility.[2] Visits are not permitted. According to sources, the status of all six VLF radio stations of the former USSR has been retained within the Russian Navy.[3]

The park of Baltic pines planted around part of the station when it was built became the source of a conflict: the fire safety inspectorate of Kstovsky District demanded that the trees be cut down, citing an insufficient distance between the edge of the built-up area and the "forest tract." Local residents collected more than five hundred signatures against the felling, and the administration of the Blizhneborisovsky village council contested the order, pointing out that the site belongs to the Ministry of Defense and is not a forest tract according to the documents. An appeal has been referred to the Regional Court.[4]

Sources

  1. radioscanner.ru — Very Low Frequency Radio Station "Goliath"
  2. pikabu.ru — Goliath Radio Station — Pikabu
  3. janto.ru — VLF Radio Stations of the USSR/Russia
  4. KP — Nizhny Novgorod — Unique Pines Planted to "Cover" the Secret Goliath Station Slated for Felling
  5. webcams.org.ru — Online Webcams: Goliath (Radio Station) in Real Time (Nearest Webcams)