Radio age research, manufacturing, communications, broadcasting, television (1941)

ailucation plan tor the many strnict-s that would be rcqiiircJ. The problems ot obtaining radio station licenses and frequency assignments from the four countries were finally solved. Preliminary studies revealed that special antennas would have to be designed in order to reduce static interference from desert sandstorms which had previously obliterated radio reception. Radio Circuit Coniftleteil in Month Installation of a radio circuit between Tapline's main olfice in Beirut on the Mediterranean and Ras el Mishaab on the Persian Gulf was the first major task. In one month, this circuit was completed and was carrying executive telephone and teletype traffic. To insure eflS- cient handling of messages over the circuit, two expert operators were furnished by RCA Communications, Inc. When the temporary stations at Beirut and Ras el Mishaab were replaced by permanent stations, the changeover was accomplished without loss of operating time. The direct circuit between these terminals has been in continuous op)eration, day and night, since service was inaugurated. As work progressed along the pipe line, RCA engi- neers provided communications for field construction units, camps, motor caravans, supervisors and survey parties. At all times, field [>ersonnel was in constant radio contact with either Ras el Mishaab or Beirut. As radio engineers and pipe line construction crews advanced from opposite ends of the 1,000-mile course, they encountered one of the world's most barren areas. A tree is a rarity in this land where the average rain- fall is only three inches a year. The summer tempera- ture rises to 130 degrees Fahrenheit, with a humidity below seven per cent. In such a climate a man requires iwo gallons ot w.itcr a day. Mc-ial surfaces, such as the sections of steel radio antennas, were too hot to touch. Oose teamwork between the RCA International Di- vision at home and abroad eliminated delays in the con- struction work. In New ^'ork, shipments of equipment and supplies were coordinated according to schedules set up by field engineers. There was a constant exchange of information between Ar.ibia and New York on en- gineering details of the entire system. Before oil began to flow in the pipe line in No- vember 1950, the communications system installed by RCA had carried more than 500,000 telegrams and more than 750,000 telephone messages. The completed system, as operated today, has the following specialized functions: (1) dispatching pump- ing operations, ( 2) airway and vehicular communica- tions and (.1) dispatching movements of oil tankers. \'oice Communications Can Be Coded Communications for pumping operations consist of parallel telephone and teletype circuits. Signals from the various pumping stations are received by an auto- matic repeater station at Rafha, midway on the pipe line, and retransmitted from there to other points. Through the use of automatic repeater operation and frequency diversity, nearly 100 per cent reliable telephone service is available between the pumping stations and the term- inals at Beirut and R.is el Mishaab. For security pur- poses, a method was developed whereby all voice com- munications may be encoded into more than a hundred ditferent combinations. Since Tapline's pumping stations are separated by as much as 175 miles, air transportation is vital for the speedy shipment of materials, equipment, medical and food supplies, and personnel. Each station has its own Plodding dromedaries form an old world foreground against a backdrop of Tapline's radio towers.