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HOW TO RECOGNISE MORE TYPES OF BROADCASTING AERIALS FROM A QUITE A LONG WAY AWAY

By Roger Piper

Non-broadcast Aerials

Once recognised they can be ruled out as being used for broadcasting...

Widely used are mobile (cell) phone aerials, usually placed inside vertical, or near vertical, off-white tall plastic boxes with a curved front. They are usually grouped completely around the mast, but some may be omitted if coverage isn’t required in those directions. This site has three tiers.

The UK emergency services’ digital radio system, TETRA (TErrestrial Trunked RAdio) often uses three individual vertical aerials stood off of the mast on quite long arms in triangular formation. A stack of four folded dipoles on a vertical aluminium tube such as the Jaybeam 7047 seems to be favoured, as shown >

Several mobile phone aerials in two tiers can also be seen here.

At some sites, instead of being equally spaced every 90º round the vertical tube the dipoles may be set to be all facing the same way, to give enhanced coverage in that direction, as here.
At some sites, generally where a lower visual impact is important, the individual aerial elements may be housed inside slim plastic tubes, usually white, as here.
Some of the aerials formerly used for the emergency services’ analogue radio communication systems may still be in place on some masts. One type, the Jaybeam 7267 skeleton slot with grid reflector is distinctive and can easily be confused with broadcast aerials.

Broadcast aerials | Ancillary aerials

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