The shortwave operator sending the message at 7.03 in the video is John Burt, my father.
He started work as a message boy in Westport in 1925, and at some stage became a telegraphist, in which capacity he served at Awarua Radio, and Wellington Radio. In 1942/3 he was posted to Fiji, and returned in 1944 to Napier. I was born there in 1946 and we moved in that year to live on Harewood Airport. My father completed the first course in communications (this must have been with the Dept of Civil Aviation), and then became Communications Instructor at No. 2 Technical Training School (2TTS) at Wigram. He remained in that post for the rest of his working life, retiring in 1965.
I sometimes went with him to 2TTS and remember sitting at one of the cubicles in the class room doing my best with my recently gained knowledge of morse code (which he taught me) to transcribe his transmissions to the class and then send them back to him.
One of the classes (1960 or 1961) presented him with a “bug” at the end of their year. It was shiny silver, and I also recall seeing him using it at 2TTS.
He was one of two brothers (the other being W.B.(Bill) Burt) who were telegraphists, and they served together at Awarua and Wellington.
The shortwave operator sending the message at 7.03 in the video is John Burt, my father.
He started work as a message boy in Westport in 1925, and at some stage became a telegraphist, in which capacity he served at Awarua Radio, and Wellington Radio. In 1942/3 he was posted to Fiji, and returned in 1944 to Napier. I was born there in 1946 and we moved in that year to live on Harewood Airport. My father completed the first course in communications (this must have been with the Dept of Civil Aviation), and then became Communications Instructor at No. 2 Technical Training School (2TTS) at Wigram. He remained in that post for the rest of his working life, retiring in 1965.
I sometimes went with him to 2TTS and remember sitting at one of the cubicles in the class room doing my best with my recently gained knowledge of morse code (which he taught me) to transcribe his transmissions to the class and then send them back to him.
One of the classes (1960 or 1961) presented him with a “bug” at the end of their year. It was shiny silver, and I also recall seeing him using it at 2TTS.
He was one of two brothers (the other being W.B.(Bill) Burt) who were telegraphists, and they served together at Awarua and Wellington.