Baltimore VHF

[stvcmty]

WJZ applied to use a non-directional antenna on RF11 to maximize their post repack signal. Licensing and Management System
Right now Baltimore has a non-directional RF11 station, WBAL.
If WJZ could use non directional operation on RF11 without interfering with other RF11 stations after the repack, could WBAL and WJZ submit some requests together to the FCC so WJZ moves to RF12, non-directional, and leave WBAL on RF11.

The candelabra tower on TV hill is complicated. WMAR is asking to change channels in the same phase as WJZ and WBAL to allow all the top mounted antennas to be changed once. As things are planned now, WJZ, WBAL, and WMAR will all end up with new top mounted antennas on the candelabra. Perhaps my thought above is not ideal because then WJZ and WMAR would get new antennas but WBAL would keep their current antenna.

Maybe WBAL would want to be re-assigned because they get some extra coverage out of it due to HAAT changes and matching the largest station in the market.

 

[Trip]

They could, but then WBAL wouldn't get new equipment. I assume they will want new equipment.

- Trip

 

[stvcmty]

They could, but then WBAL wouldn't get new equipment. I assume they will want new equipment.

- Trip

I was thinking that too.

 

[Voyager6]

Sometimes things just don't make sense. WJZ is moving from 13 to 11. WBAL is moving from 11 to 12. Wouldn't the logical move have been to move WJZ to 12 and leave WBAL at 11? Why require both to get new antennas? Is there some technical reason to move WBAL to 12 instead of staying at 11?

 

[Peter Parker]

I doubt that they are doing it just to give WBAL new equipment. Having said that while I have seen the question posted in may places i have never seen a particularly good answer. Hopefully someone else knows the answer.

 

[Trip]

It's because of pre-existing interference relationships with other stations that had to be moved around. To be specific, this is at least partially the fault of WGBY moving to high-VHF. WGBY was assigned to channel 13. To make it fit there, among other things, stations in New York, Scranton, and Baltmore are swapped to 12. Philadelphia and Martinsburg are swapped to 13. Martinsburg on 13 meant WVEC couldn't be there; it landed on 11. WVEC is already short-spaced to WJZ, but could not be co-channel to WBAL. Thus, WBAL, and not WJZ, was moved onto 12, and WJZ went to 11.

- Trip