[FedCom] Re: What can we actually monitor?

Sat, 18 May 2002 20:09:16 -0400

I really thank you and other fine individuals for your input.  I get the
impression that more activity is heard more towards the west coast.  I
rarely, if ever, hear anyone reporting active in the clear transmissions,
except for the DEA, on the east coast. Perhaps, we all lack patience or are
just not looking in the right place.  Enjoy what you do hear and strong
signals to all!

-----Original Message-----
From: [email protected]
[mailto:[email protected]]On Behalf Of Blaine Brooks
Sent: Saturday, May 18, 2002 2:37 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: [FedCom] Re: What can we actually monitor?

Bryan E. Phelps wrote:

> I know I'm really trying your patience, but, excluding the USSS, do the
ATF,
> FBI, FEMA and US Marshall communicate "in the clear?"

Yes. And it is not impossible to hear them. As stated
by others, though, you must have patience....which
many newbies to milcom and fed monitoring sometimes
have little of.

Certainly the federal agencies are not going to have the
level of radio traffic as your local police and fire department
and you must understand that. However, when the federal law
enforcement channels do get 'hoppin (and it's "in the clear"),
usually it's some pretty exciting stuff to listen to.

Here in DFW, most DEA, USCS, IRS CID, USPS INSP,
BATF, USSS, USMS, & USSD DIPLO SEC is in the
clear.

DEA is usually running a surveillance a day, with CH 3 &
4 tactical usually in the clear. USCS has been conducting
surveillances lately on A-2 (165.2375) in the clear. Customs
ops at DFW (A-8 165.6875) is 95% in the clear.

I've never heard IRS CID go scrambled here, always in the
clear.  USPS INSP are extremely active on a daily basis here
on 417.600, their primary repeater, all in the clear.

BATF, although quite inactive here, does come up in the
clear on 165.2875.  USSS is quite active on a local basis
here with Tango in the clear 100% of the time. A surveillance
op was heard recently on Charlie 165.375 with no DES.

USSD Diplo Security is in the clear almost 100% of the time,
with recent visits from Ehud Barak and Benjamin Netanyahu
being heard.

FBI is another story.....most of their comms here are indeed
scrambled...BUT it is not hard to determine their frequencies..
Just go searching through their bands and listen for the DES
white noise blast, then write the frequencies down....Once,
you've accomplished that, if you have a tone capable scanner
(such as the BC 780) all you have to do is attach a tone of
167.9 to the frequency and if they ever do transmit in the clear
you'll hear the transmission without having to deal with the
scrambling noise. Again, having a tone capable scanner for
federal transmissions is optimum.

Recently, there was a joint Dallas police/FBI operation in
which FBI needed to talk to DPD officers before the raid
and after, etc. etc. Well, because of this, all transmissions
were in the clear for the entire operation.

Sorry, to be so long winded in explanation, but bottom line,
if you have the patience to search and find and listen, you
WILL hear federal communications. Not everyone has gone
the way of NEXTEL, as some might have you believe.

Blaine Brooks
Flower Mound, Tx.

_______________________________________________
FedCom mailing list
[email protected]
http://mailman.qth.net/mailman/listinfo/fedcom