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HFGCS on 6739 kHz: the night frequency
The night frequency of the US Air Force HF network. The same simultaneous traffic as on 11175 and 8992 kHz, radio checks and EAM strings, on the band that carries across Europe and the Atlantic in the dark hours.
What you hear
The same traffic as on the other HFGCS frequencies, at the same moment: radio checks to Mainsail, phone patches, Emergency Action Messages in phonetic letters. The network and its messages are described in the main article.
Who transmits and why
6739 kHz is the lowest HFGCS primary in everyday use, for the hours when the higher bands are closed. As on the rest of the set, the traffic is open: the stations transmit in plain voice for anyone to hear, the program only receives, and listening to an open transmission is lawful in most countries, though some limit what may be done with the content afterwards. Know the rules where you live; this is not a legal guarantee.
When and where to listen
In Europe 6739 kHz comes into its own after about 22:00 UTC and stays the best frequency until dawn, when 8992 kHz wakes up. Croughton in England is strong across the continent all night, Lajes in the Azores nearly as strong, and from the small hours the American stations come in over the dark Atlantic. By day the frequency is absorbed within a few hundred kilometres of each transmitter and only useful close in. Upper sideband.
In ShackDeck
Station catalogue → Military → HFGCS 6739. The program finds a public receiver with 6739 kHz, tunes it in USB and plays it; nothing of your own is needed. In daylight switch to the 11175 kHz row.