<Text: Bernt Erfjord Photos: Olav Nordli. Copyright: DXLC 1997.>
Shortwave broadcasting from Norway has more or less been synonymous with the transmitter at Fredrikstad (Fredrikstad Kringkaster). For 35 years this station has been almost solely responsible for bringing Norway’s voice to the world. Radio Norway was for decades among the frontrunners on the shortwave bands, not in terms of the number of frequencies and broadcasting hours, but through its virtual world-wide coverage from one single site. Being situated "on top of the world" proved an asset which helped Fredrikstad put a good signal into all corners of the globe. The dedicated station crew contributed by fine tuning the equipment to constantly provide a reliable and strong signal.
The history of the Fredrikstad transmitter dates back to the late thirties, when it became evident that Norway needed an international service to provide Norwegians abroad with news from home, as well as bringing news and views from Norway to the rest of the world. Consequently, planning of the Fredrikstad SW site was well underway when World War II broke out.
The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (NRK) had already started SW transmissions from the coastal station at Jeløy and from the main AM site in Oslo, Lambertseter. However, these transmissions were mainly relays of the domestic service, and the output ranged from 1 to 5 kW.
When the war ended, plans for an international service were given high priority based on the success of the wartime SW broadcasts in Norwegian from WRUL Boston and BBC London. On January 3rd 1948, King Haakon inaugurated the first official broadcast from the foreign service of NRK, Radio Norway.
The original setup consisted of a 100 Watt RCA transmitter, fitted with a self-made 1 kW output stage. This unit was operational until the early sixties. Furthermore, there were two 8 KW Westinghouse transmitters and a 100 kW General Electric transmitter in place when the King opened the station in 1948. The old 5 kW SW transmitter from Lambertseter in Oslo was also moved to Fredrikstad in 1954. The Westinghouse units were dismantled in 1975, while the 100 kW G-100-A was kept in daily use until 1984. Large parts of this transmitter remain at the station.
By the sixties, Norway was beginning to lag as the airwaves were filling with high-power output, and Fredrikstad was rebuilt to house larger transmitters. During 1964 and 1965 two 120 kW Philips transmitters were put into service. All the old units except the 100 kW GE were dismantled to make room. At the same time, the antennas were also rebuilt and expanded.
The final upgrading of Fredrikstad Kringkaster was carried out in 1976 when the current 500 kW Thomson TRE2351 was installed.
In 1982 the new SW site at Kvitsøy north of Stavanger in South-Western Norway was inaugurated with two 500 kW transmitters, followed in 1987 by a similar site at Sveio between Bergen and Stavanger. In 1996, a second 500 kW transmitter was completed at Sveio. With the combined facilites of Kvitsøy and Sveio now easily covering the needs of Radio Norway International, the site at Fredrikstad was becoming history.
Fredrikstad was taken out of regular service during the winter of 1996/1997 and has been standing by ever since, making only a handful of appearances to cover for Kvitsöy or Sveio during maintenance breaks - most recently in April.
The station grounds are partly owned by NRK and partly leased from the City of Fredrikstad. Unsuccesful attempts were made to cover running costs by selling airtime, and it now seems certain that the transmitter will be divided up and sold, and the grounds returned to the city.
The 500 kW Thomson transmitter is normally run with 350 kW, which is more than sufficient to cover all target areas. The current antenna is a rotable logperiodic, but due to local restrictions a sector in the direction of Northern Japan and parts of Russia may not be used.
When approached by DX-Listeners’ Club, Radio Norway International instantly agreed to give Fredrikstad a worthy farewell by making a special broadcast to coincide with the Nordx weekend. On October 18 between 1630 and 1700 UTC a commemorative programme was aired on 11680 kHz, marking the end of an era in Norwegian shortwave broadcasting.
Station Manager Joubert Kristoffersen in front of the control panel of the 500 kW Thomson transmitter.
When Fredrikstad reduced its output to one transmitter, the old antennas were dismantled. Now, this rotatable logperiodic antenna is used for all transmissions.
Station Manager Joubert Kristoffersen with one of the spare transmitter tubes.
In recent years, the staff at Fredrikstad collected spare parts from similar transmitters which were closed down abroad. Consequently, Fredrikstad has a large store of parts which could have kept the transmitter on the air for many years. As it now seems likely that the transmitter will be dismantled, much of this could end up being scrapped.
After the removal of the Philips transmitters, the Fredrikstad transmitter hall became very spacious.
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