Jacques d'Avignon, Canada
Jacques
started doing some SWL in 1938. In those days all
home radios had shortwave bands and it was his initiation
to the world of shortwave. Since 1950 he had never
been without at least one radio that can pick up
shortwave broadcasts and utility transmissions.
Over the years, he owned or operated
various types of shortwave receiving equipment.
He was involved in building, setting up and operating
the first commercially owned Weather Satellite APT
(Automatic Picture Transmission) receiving station
in Canada and a similar one in the Middle East.
He was also involved in commercial radio-facsimile
and radio-teletype operations.
Over the years, he did research
on antennas and in the "black art" of
radio propagation forecasting. Each month he used
to prepare the propagation forecasts page for the
British magazine ShortWave Magazine,
and for the web pages of Radio Amateur of
Canada and the Ontario DX Association.
For many years, he wrote a monthly column on propagation
topics in Monitoring Times. Many of
his articles on radio propagation and other radio-related
subjects have also been published in handbooks and
magazines worldwide.
During the mid-90s the
Russian service of Radio Canada International was
also using his services to prepare the propagation
forecasts that were supplied to the Russian listeners
attempting to listen to worldwide broadcasts.
Jacques had a commercial General
Radio Telephone Licence and a Ham Basic
and Advanced Certificate of Proficiency in Radio.
He was one of the main
instigators of the SWL DXpeditions in
Miscou Island NB, where the noise conditions are
just right to easily hear European LW and MW broadcasters
and also intercept some European and South Atlantic
NDBs at all hours of the day.
Jacques passed away on February 7th, 2013.
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