Swingate transmitting station

{{Infobox UK transmitter

|name = Swingate

|image = 250px

|caption = The three Swingate towers

|map_name = Kent

|coordinates = {{coord|51.137778|1.335833|type:landmark_region:GB|display=inline,title}}

|location = Swingate, Kent

|height2 = {{convert|111|m|ft|0}}

|gridref = TR334429

|built =

|demolished = 2010 (South tower)

|collapsed =

|footnotes =

}}

The Swingate transmitting station is a facility for FM-transmission in the village of Swingate, near Dover, Kent ({{gbmapping|TR334429}}). For many years there were three lattice towers with a height of {{convert|111|m|ft|0}}. This station was one of the first 5 Chain Home Radar stations completed in 1936 and was originally designated AMES (Air Ministry Experimental Station) 04 Dover. The FM transmitting antennas are attached to what was the middle tower; microwave link dishes and mobile telephone antennas were spread across all three towers. The south tower was dismantled in March 2010, as a result, only two remain.

The Swingate towers no longer have the three cantilever platforms that were fitted originally.

History

Originally there were four towers with wires stretched between them to transmit radio waves that were detected by a group of four smaller towers to the east of the surviving ones. The receiver towers were demolished after the war, along with one of the transmitter towers. Subsequently the north mast was demolished and replaced with a similar tower with a different bracing design. During the Cold War the towers sprouted four transmitters at their base which were popularly assumed to be part of the US ACE High communication system but were more likely an RAF link to Germany. The south tower was dismantled in March 2010.

=Timeline=

In 1936, four transmitters with platforms were erected. In 1955 one transmitter was dismantled, leaving three standing. In 1991 the north tower was replaced by a shorter one. In 2010 the south tower was dismantled.{{cite web |author=Lorraine |title=Part 3 Swingate, Radar and the Towers |url=https://doverhistorian.com/2015/02/07/part-3-swingate-radar-and-the-towers/ |website=doverhistorian.com |publisher=The Dover Historian |access-date=14 March 2021 |date=7 February 2015}}

Swingate transmitting towers - original configuration 1936.jpg|Four towers with platforms, 1936

Swingate military telecommunication station - geograph.org.uk - 1633769.jpg|Three towers plus Cold War installation, 1982

Remaining Swingate Chain Home Station Masts - geograph.org.uk - 74790.jpg|Two of the original towers plus a newer, shorter one, 2005

Swingate Chain Home radar towers - White Cliffs of Dover.jpg|Two remaining towers, 2011

Channels available from this site

File:Chain home.jpg in Essex, the only Chain Home radar tower to retain the original platforms.]]

= High Frequency Trading =

Several of the microwave dishes located on one of the towers provide connections via a chain of towers between the NYSE Euronext datacentres in Basildon and Slough, and Frankfurt for use in High Frequency Trading

= Analogue radio =

The transmitter is the main transmission station for the BBC which serves the bulk of Kent.Radio Listeners Guide 2010

class="wikitable sortable"

!Frequency

!kW

!Service

90.0 MHz

|11

|BBC Radio 2

92.4 MHz

|11

|BBC Radio 3

94.4 MHz

|11

|BBC Radio 4

99.5 MHz

|11

|BBC Radio 1

104.2 MHz

|10

|BBC Radio Kent

References

External links

[http://tx.mb21.co.uk/gallery/swingate/index.php Swingate transmitting station at mb21]
[https://www.flickr.com/photos/doverpast/4460372893/in/photostream/ National Geographic photo] showing the original configuration of four transmitters and four receiver towers

Category:Transmitter sites in England