Towers come down at Pifo

Tall Towers Removed from Radio Station HCJB’s Site in Ecuador
Source: HCJB Global

Crews removed the last of the tall antennas and towers at Radio Station HCJB’s international transmitter site in Ecuador, the height of which would obstruct the flight path of the future international airport for the capital city of Quito.

Under earlier agreements between the Quito Airport Corporation (CORPAQ) and HCJB Global, the towers were removed prior to a December 31st 2008, deadline.

“The last of these tall towers were taken down on Dec. 24 at 9:30 a.m.,” said Geoff Kooistra, operations and engineering director for the station.

Christmas is noteworthy in the station’s history as its first program went on the air on Christmas Day, 1931. The first broadcasts from the international transmitter site in Pifo, just east of the capital, began in 1953.

With 14 other shorter antennas and towers still standing, the transmitters at Pifo continue to broadcast 60 hours per day with targets throughout the Americas. Trade languages such as Spanish, Portuguese and German still air, as do indigenous languages such as Quichua (Ecuador), Waorani (Ecuador’s Amazon region), Cofán (Andean highlands, Amazon region and northern Ecuador) and Kulina (Brazil and eastern Peru).

HCJB's Pifo site has previously delivered the stations programming to locations all over the world.

“We also continue digital shortwave broadcasts both to Brazil and to Europe,” Kooistra said.

The station transmits 56 hours of analogue signal and four hours of digital shortwave, according to Steve Sutherland who manages the Pifo site and staff.

However, all shortwave broadcasts from Pifo are projected to end no later than April 1st 2010.