DFW to EWR

 

While flying from DFW to EWR I recently used an FM radio app on my phone to see what I could hear. I've managed to bandscan while flying before but it's very dependent on external receiving factors. For the radio station, the radiation pattern and power, and perhaps most importantly the elevation and position of my aircraft at a given moment. As you can see, the receivable stations track SW to NE as I scan slowly from 88.1 to 107.9 FM over about an hour.

Most stations are only receivable for a few minutes, and are very dependent on the position of the antenna, which is the headphone cable. I found unexpectedly that a loop shape seemed to be the most effective, not the typical the dipole wire 45° angle.

88.1 WRFL? - At 7,900 watts this seems unlikely but not impossible. I heard classical music which doesn't match their schedule. 

88.9 WEKU - 50k watts in the Lexington, KY market.  

94.1 W231DM - 250 watt repeater for Talk radio WZXI-AM. I think I heard the American Ground Radio program which was not great. Right-wing radical conspiracy nutters. These people ate equine dewormer back in 2020. 

94.3 WULF - Great call letters and 40k watts. Pretty standard country music outlet SE of Louisville, KY. 

94.5 WMXL - At 85k watts it made for a pretty clear signal, AC format leaning pop. Yawn.

95.1 WGGC - Their 100k watts wasn't as strong as expected but probably still distant at that moment. Country format similar to WULF. They used to use the branding "Goober" I didn't' hear it but I hope they still do.

96.9 WGKS - A 50k watt Classic Hits station also in Lexington. The song I heard was OneRepublic - Counting Stars. 

97.7 WKCA - This is only a 3,700 watt station near Morehead, KY. I heard Johnny Cash, Ring of Fire; a classic. Gateway Radio Works owns 5 stations in Eastern Kentucky. They keep it local. 

97.9 WSEI? - There are several consecutive country stations on the radio band in eastern century but I heard a station ID that sounded like "WCEI" which isn't possible from Baltimore. I think that was actually the 50k watt WSEI-FM stick in Olney, IL almost 200 miles away.

98.5 WTFM - Heard the station ID loud and clear, the frequency matches but what I heard was religious talk.  The station resides in that oddly shaped Johnson City/Kingsport/Bristol TN/VA market. 

98.7 WMKK-LP? - I heard pop music on 98.7 so I'm thinking that might be WMKK and not WKDO though at 25k watts the latter is more likely in any normal circumstance. The chat on Radio Discussions is unfair either way. [LINK]

98.9 - W255DB - In a hundred mile radius the only station playing pop is a 240 watts repeater for rhythmic AC WWTB-AM. 

99.5 WYGO- This really should be the 25k watt WKDP country station out of Corbin, KY. But what I heard them playing was the 1989 Janet Jackson single "Escapade." So perhaps it's none of the repeats on that frequency and instead the 2,700 watt Hot AC station in Madisonville, TN. 

100.5 WDYK - 6,000 watts in Ridgeley, WV, I heard country but on an AC station the format is all a jumble.

101.9 - WVAQ - This station popped up with RCP as "iana" which probably has something to do with their HD radio channels. Their primary signal is CHR which fits the reggaeton dance tune I heard. 

102.5 - WDVE - Here I heard an ad for 84 Lumber in Morgantown, WV.  The only possibilities are WUSQ in Winchester 2.5 hours away or the station in Pittsburgh, PA. 

102.7. WVSR - I didn't catch the calls but I heard the brand "Electric 102.7" which is that 50k watt CHR station in Charleston, WV. 

102.9 WLTK? - This was the strangest thing I caught in the whole band scan.  I heard a recorded voice speaking over a bed music gospel chorus... "When you need somebody to help you, you want somebody with that dog in them. I'm talking about that dog in them. You ever hear the expression; like you ain't got that dog in you. If you got to fight, you better have a dog with you. If you got to fight, you got to have a dog with you. Got to have top dog with you. He got that dog in him. And he going to fight. He going to fight to the end. And you know, you know what he going to try to do? He going to try to bite him..."  It turns out to be an ad for a law firm. [SOURCE]  A K-Love outlet seems an unlikely place for the ad but I don't have other likely guesses.

103.3 WAKG- I heard a bit of a country song, and there's only one in 200 miles on this frequency, and it's 100k watts out of Danville, VA.

103.7 WSOC - I heard the brand Backstage country which on 103.7 should be WSOC in Charlotte, NC. At 100k watts it's possible. 

104.3 WQCN - I heard gospel/R&B music. That has to be WQCN, or a very distant WDAS. Being still west of the Appalachians I'm guessing the former.

104.9 WSTV - I heard the brand "Steve FM" which has to be the 14,500 watt stick in Roanoke, VA. It was a mix of pop songs as you'd expect for Adult Hits. 

105.1 - WKLC - No ID but two rock songs back to back this is surely the 2,950 watt stick in Charleston, WV. It's also possible this was WWRE in Bridgewater, VA. 

105.3 WNOH - A 50k watt station in the Norfolk market, Mixed AC. 

105.9 WMAL - I heard Call in talk at about 10:00 PM. So that's the first hour of America at Night with McGraw Milhaven.

106.5 WWMX - Caught just part of a pop song, but it's probably the 10,500 watt station in Baltimore.

106.9 WAFX - No ID but by geography this was definitely the Classic Rocker in Hampton Roads. At 100k watts I'd be more surprised if I couldn't hear it. 

107.1 WFXC - I caught a little R&B and the "Foxy" brand name so that has to be WFXC but the distance on that is impressive for a 13k watt station in Durham, NC.

107.7 WEOP - This station was loud and mostly clear for a surprising 20 minutes. They were broadcasting ABC radio news.