NHK World Radio Japan

FRÉDÉRIC FRANÇOIS CHOPIN heard over NHK World Radio Japan via Yamata, Japan. This 50 minute programme featured a selection better known music of Chopin. It  was received at 17.30 UTC (1.30 AM Malaysia time), on 21 October 2025. Beautiful reception for beautiful music! 🎶🎶

Radio Taiwan International

Radio Taiwan International English broadcast was logged on 18 August 2025, at 16.15 till 16.40 UTC, on 9.405 kHz with SINPO of 45444.

Shown is a picture of Mount Mabolasi. The mountain is located within the Central Mountain Range of Taiwan with a maximum peak height of 3,785 metres (12,418 ft). It is the fourth highest mountain in the island republic.

Reception report was emailed on the following day. QSL card arrived on 6 October 2025.

RX: Alinco DX-R8T EXT ANT: 1/4 wave QTH: Malaysia 

Radio Taiwan International

Radio Taiwan International l English broadcast was logged on 15 September 2025, 16.00 till 16.45 UTC, on 9.405 kHz with SINPO of 44343 -- fair signal, clear audio, despite some atmospheric noise.

Shown is a picture of Mount Dabajian. lt is located in the northern section of the Shei-Pa National Park in Hsinchu County, Taiwan. It is surrounded by numerous other peaks, the most predominant including Mount Nanhu, Mount Yize, Central Range Point, Mt. Pintian, and Mt. Mutule. The mountain stands at a height of 3,492 m (11,457 ft).

Reception report was emailed on the following day. QSL card arrived on 6 October 2025.

RX:Degen DE-1102 EXT ANT: 3 meter random wire QTH: Malaysia 

Radio Delta International

Radio Delta International, presumably transmitting from Germany (?), was logged on 28 September 2025. Broadcast of pop music, biographical profile of Joe Crocker, weather and frequent station ID was monitored from 09.55 until 10.30 UTC, using the remote SDR at Twente University, Enschede, The Netherlands. Reception on 9.800 kHz rated a SINPO of 55444 - good signal strength, slight fading.

Reception report was emailed on the same day. An eQSL without my name and details was received on 4 October 2025.

RMT RX: SDR via Twente University EXT ANT: mini whip QTH: monitored remotely from Malaysia 

Commemorative Postcard "First Meeting of German Shortwave Amateurs after the War in Stuttgart"

Commemorative postcard for the "First Meeting of German Shortwave Amateurs after the War in Stuttgart" held on 7-8 June 1947.

The postcard featured an illustration of presumabl Stuttgart, with radio equipment and antennas.

The text "Hams always come back" and "Der alte Ham-Spirit lebt noch!" (The old Ham-Spirit still lives!) reflected the resilience and passion of German amateur radio enthusiasts after World War II.

The locked cage with vacuum tubes and the question "Wer hat den Schlüssel?" (Who has the key?) likely alluded to the challenges and restrictions faced by German amateur radio operators in the immediate post-war period.

The reverse side of the card is identified as a "Tagungs-Festpostkarte," which translates to "Conference-Festival Postcard," suggesting it was issued for this specific amateur radio gathering.

The card was "Herausgegeben vom Veranstalter" (issued by the organizer) WBRC, located at Stuttgart, Neue Weinsteige 5.

Affixed to the postcard is a 24 Pfennig stamp depicting Heinrich von Stephan, a key figure in German postal history.

The circular postmark indicates "Stuttgart",  7-8.6.1947. It also mentions "deutscher Kurzweil Amateure Württ-Bad. Radia-P," suggesting this particular amateur radio event was held in the Württemberg-Baden region.

Background 

In July 1947, this shortwave conference was held in Stuttgart, attended by around 500 radio amateurs from all over Germany, giving amateur radio a significant boost there. 

Clubs were gradually authorised in other parts of Germany as well. First, the Hessian Radio Club (HRC), modeled on the Stuttgart model (even American officials considered this a precedent), then the Bavarian Amateur Radio Club (BARC), and finally the German Amateur Radio Club/British Zone (DARC/BZ). The radio operators in the French Zone had to wait until 1949, those in the Saar region until 1951, and those in the Soviet Zone until 1952 (this is a reminder for GDR nostalgics). 

An important culmination of this development was the founding of the DARC (without any additions) in the fall of 1950, into which the aforementioned clubs and their members were integrated over time.

Radio Taiwan International Calendar - October 2025

Radio Taiwan International Calendar, October 2025

Deutsche Demokratische Republik Rundfunk 1961

Deutsche Demokratische Republik on 25 October 1961 issued Rundfunk  "Tag der Briefmarke" (Stamp Day) that featured a microphone and radio waves, symbolising broadcasting ("Rundfunk") from the German Democratic Republic.

In September 1961, following the construction of the Berlin Wall, the Deutsche Demokratische Republik (DDR) launched an anti-Western broadcast campaign called "Blitz auf Natosender" (Strike against NATO Broadcasters), which aimed to prevent its citizens from receiving Western radio and television signals. The DDR's official youth organisation, the FDJ (Freie Deutsche Jungend), encouraged people to remove or damage antennas pointing towards the West, where "mental border-crossers" were living. People who did not voluntarily give up Western television and radio were to have their antennas sawn off or turned by force "towards socialism and peace".

Radio Taiwan International Calendar - September 2025

 

Radio Taiwan International Calendar, September 2025

Radio Taiwan International

Radio Taiwan International, presumably transmitting from Tamshui, was received on 9 July 2025.  English programme was monitored from 16.05 till 17.00 UTC. Reception on 9.405 kHz rated a SINPO of 55444 -- strong signal but minor atmospheric noise. 

Reception report was emailed on the following day. This QSL card arrived in the mail on 14 August 2025.

RX: Alinco DX-R8T EXT ANT: 1/4 wave QTH: Malaysia 

All India Radio (via Bangalore)

All India Radio Akashvani External Service, transmitting from Bangalore, India, was logged on 2 June 2025. An Arabic language broadcast, beginning with nearly 10 minutes of a Quran recitation, followed by talk and instrumental music, was monitored from 17.40 till 18.20 UTC. Reception on 9.620 kHz rated a SINPO of 45554. 

Reception report was emailed to Spectrum Management, the verifier for AIR, on the following day. QSL Card was received on 7 August 2025.

RX: Sangean ATS-909 EXT ANT: random 3 meter wire QTH: Central West Malaysia 

Voice of Turkiye

Voice of Turkiye, transmitting from Emirler, was logged on 4 June 2025. English programmes with contemporary Turkish music was monitored from 16.30 till 17.24 UTC. Reception on 11.660 kHz rated a SINPO of 55344 -- strong and clear audio, despite moderate.

Reception report was emailed on the following day. QSL card arrived in the mail on 7 August 2025.

RX: Tecsun S-2000 EXT ANT: 3-meter random wire QTH: Malaysia 

Radio Taiwan International Calendar - August 2025

Radio Taiwan International Calendar, August 2025

Radio Taiwan International

Radio Taiwan International, presumably transmitting from Tamshui, was received on 1 June 2025.  English programmes included: "Music of L.A. Boyz", hosted by Tristan Hilderbrand, with four rap songs, including "Oh-La"; "The Divide", hosted by Iris Hsu, focused on internet/cyberspace laws in China with Michael Caster, head of the Global China Program. He also discussed multilateralism in the region; and "Formosa Dream Chasers",  by Mary Anne and Ching-en, which highlighted co-founder of the Li-ze Community School, Michael Huang. This broadcast was monitored from 16.05 till 17.00 UTC. Reception on 9.405 kHz rated a SINPO of 55444 -- strong signal but minor atmospheric noise. 

Reception report was emailed on the following day. This QSL card arrived in the mail on 22 July 2025.

RX: Alinco DX-R8T EXT ANT: 1/4 wave QTH: Malaysia 

Deutsche Bundespost Berlin Internationale Funkausstellung Berlin

Deutsche Bundespost Berlin on 16 July 1981 issued a 60-pfennig postage stamp, commemorating the Internationale Funkausstellung Berlin, also known as the International Radio Exhibition Berlin, or IFA. The stamp featured the building which was inaugurated on 22 January 1931 as the Haus des Rundfunks ("House of Broadcasting"), on Masurenallee in Berlin-Westend. It was the official seat of the Reichs-Rundfunk-Gesellschaft. Designed in 1929 by the architect Hans Poelzig (1869-1936), this triangular-shaped building was the world's first self-contained broadcasting centre and included a large concert hall.

Voice of Turkiye

Voice of Turkiye, transmitting from Emirler, was logged on 16 May 2025. English programmes "Pulse of Turkish Foreign Policy", "Did You Know That" and Turkish contemporary music was monitored from 17.00 till 17.26 UTC. Reception on 11.660 kHz rated a SINPO of 55344 -- strong and clear audio, despite moderate.

Reception report was emailed on the following day. QSL card arrived in the mail on 9 July 2025.

RX: Tecsun S-2000 EXT ANT: 3-meter random wire QTH: Malaysia 

Radio Taiwan International Calendar - July 2025

 

Radio Taiwan International Calendar, July 2025

Radio Taiwan International Calendar - June 2025

 

Radio Taiwan International Calendar, June 2025

 

 

Liberia ELWA 20th Anniversary

LIBERIA on 16 January 1974 issued a First Day Cover (FDC) stamp combo to commemorate the 20th anniversary of ELWA Radio. It was a missionary radio station in Liberia. It's call letters ELWA stood for Eternal Love Winning Africa. This particular FDC features four stamps, two 15-cent and two 17-cent stamps, depicting the map of Africa and a person  listening to a portable radio. The postmark cancellation originated from Monrovia, Liberia. 

This radio station, which operated on shortwave, could be received worldwide in the 1970s. When civil war broke out in Liberia in 1990, the station was burned and looted. For the next 13 years, ELWA Radio struggled to stay on the air through waves of civil strife, broadcasting from an old garage building. ELWA was threatened again when a fire gutted that building in 2011. 

With faith and determination, the ELWA Radio staff set up two studios in the transmitter building and continued work, carrying their listeners through the difficult times of the Ebola epidemic in 2014 and the Covid-19 pandemic of 2020.

The station currently operates primarily on FM with a 2kW transmitter; SW transmission at one point resumed with a 1kW, much less than its former power.

Additionally, the ELWA QSL Card is one I received in the mid-1970s verifying reception from Denver, Colorado -- my residency back then.

Voice of Turki

Voice of Turkiye, transmitting from Emirler, was logged on 11 April 2025. English programmes "Pulse of Turkish Foreign Policy", "Did You Know That" and Turkish contemporary music was monitored from 16.55 till 17.25 UTC. Reception on 9.660 kHz rated a SINPO of 55344 -- strong and clear audio, despite moderate.

Reception report was emailed on the following day. QSL card arrived in the mail on 8  May 2025.

RX: Tecsun S-2000 EXT ANT: 3-meter random wire QTH: Malaysia 

Voice of Turkiye

Voice of Turkiye, transmitting from Emirler, was logged on 21 February 2025. English programmes "Pulse of Turkish Foreign Policy", "Did You Know That" and Turkish contemporary music was monitored from 17.50 till 18.25 UTC. Reception on 9.660 kHz rated a SINPO of 55344 -- strong and clear audio, despite moderate.

Reception report was emailed on the following day. QSL card arrived in the mail on 8  May 2025.

RX: Tecsun S-2000 EXT ANT: 3-meter random wire QTH: Malaysia 

Radio Taiwan International

Radio Taiwan International, presumably transmitting from Tamshui, was received on 14 April 2025. An English language broadcast on Taiwanese tourist sites was monitored from 16.30 till 17.00 UTC. Reception on 9.405 kHz rated a SINPO of 55444 -- strong signal but minor atmospheric noise. 

Reception report was emailed on the following day. This QSL card arrived in the mail on 8 May 2025.

RX: Alinco DX-R8T EXT ANT: 1/4 wave QTH: Malaysia 

Radio Taiwan International Calendar - May 2025

 

Radio Taiwan International Calendar, May 2025

FEBC (via Bocaue)

FEBC (Radio Tios), transmitting from Bocaue, Philippines, was logged on 14 February 2025. A Russian language broadcast was monitored from 15.00 till 16.00 UTC, on the shortwave frequency of 9.920 kHz.

Reception was emailed to FEBC shortly afterwards. An eQSL was received on 30 April 2025

RX: Degen DE-1102 EXT ANT: 3 meter random wire QTH: Subang Jaya, Malaysia 

NHK World Radio Japan

NHK World Radio Japan via Yamata, Japan sent this verification (QSL) card for an Urdu language broadcast monitored here in Malaysia on 29 February 2025.

The card has a highlighted notation stating NHK World - Japan will cease issuing verification cards on 31 March 2025. This seems par for the course given the cost of postage worldwide and the dwindling (aging) listener audience. 

It is disheartening for old listeners like me who first received a verification card from Radio Japan in 1968-1969. When I resumed this hobby in 2007, NHK World Radio Japan and many domestic Japanese MW stations were verified from Malaysia. 

While this is their swan song for me, on  a more conciliatory note their SW and MW broadcasts can still be heard. Hopefully this will not cease like so many great stations that have gradually disappeared in recent years.

Vatican Radio QSL Retrospective of Pope Francis

Vatican Radio QSL Retrospective of Pope Francis. 

Pope Francis (born Jorge Mario Bergoglio; 1936 – 2025) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2013 until his death in 2025. 

Radio Taiwan International Calendar - April 2025

 

Radio Taiwan International Calendar, April 2025

 

Norfolk Island 50th Anniversary of Radio Australia

Norfolk Island (Australia) on 21 November 1989 issued a set of three First Day Cover stamps commemorating Radio Australia's 50th anniversary (1939-1989). 

The stamps featured: 

41c - Inaugural announcer John Royle 

65c - Radio Australia coverage

$1.10 - Jacko the laughing kookaburra 

Radio Australia opened its broadcasts with the melody "Waltzing Matilda" and the song of the Kookaburra bird, hence the cachet and stamp design. Its programmes targeted the Pacific and Oceania, but we're just as popular throughout the English-speaking world. 

NHK World Radio Japan

NHK World Radio Japan, transmitting from Yamata, was logged on 19 January 2025. An English language broadcast was monitored from 14.00 till 14.30 UTC, on 11.815 kHz.

Reception report was submitted on the following day. A QSL was received on 7 March 2025.

RX: Degen DE-1102 EXT ANT: 3 meter random wire QTH: Malaysia