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Radio systems and networks
This page contains information about (military) radio sets and networks.
The list is by no means complete and only shows devices that contain,
or are used in combination with, cryptographic equipment.
It also shows radios that were used by
Stay-Behind Networks (Gladio), Special Forces (SF)
and emergency services.
For radios that were used for clandestine (espionage) operations, please refer
to the section on spy radio sets.
This section also describes a number of integrated (radio) communication
systems that are commonly referred to on this website.
Click any of the links below for further information or check out
the Glossary.
If you have additional information available, please contact us.
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Radio sets on this website
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International Telecommunication Union
ITU
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The allocation of the frequency spectrum is internationally coordinated
by the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) [4],
which is part of the United nations (UN).
Within the ITU, the use of the radio
spectrum is delegated to the Radio section ITU-R, who has divided
the world into the three regions shown in the map below.
Europe, Afrika and part of the Middle-East are in Region 1,
North and South America are in Region 2. Asia, Australia and New Zealand
are in Region 3.
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| Band | Name | Frequency | Remark | Wiki |
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| TLF | Tremendously Low Frequency | 0.3 - 3 Hz | |
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| ELF | Extremely Low Frequency | 3 - 30 Hz | U-boat communication | ➤ |
| SLF | Super Low Frequency | 30 - 300 Hz | U-boat communication | ➤ |
| ULF | Ultra Low Frequency | 300 Hz - 3 kHz | Earth-Mode comms | ➤ |
| VLF | Very Low Frequency | 3 - 30 kHz | Time, military, navigation | ➤ |
| LF | Low Frequency | 30 - 300 kHz | LW AM broadcast, nav. | ➤ |
| MF | Medium Frequency | 300 kHz - 3 MHz | MW AM broadcast, nav. | ➤ |
| HF | High Frequency | 3 - 30 MHz | SW AM broadcast, amateur | ➤ |
| VHF | Very High Frequency | 30 - 300 MHz | TV, radio, 2-way comms | ➤ |
| UHF | Ultra High Frequency | 300 - 3000 MHz | TV, radar, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 2-way radio, amateur | ➤ |
| SHF | Super High Frequency | 3 - 30 GHz | Point-to-point, Wi-Fi, radar | ➤ |
| EHF | Extremely High Frequency | 30 - 300 GHz | 5G, radar, security | ➤ |
| THF | Tremendously High Frequency | 300 GHz - 3 THz | Astronomy, research 1 | ➤ |
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Some sources define the upper limit of the THF band ad 30 THz.
This band lies within the transition region between microwave
and far infrared, and can be regarded as either.
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| Band | ITU | Frequency | Channel | Spacing | Remark |
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| I | VHF | 47 - 68 MHz | 2-4 | 7 MHz | Analogue television |
| II | VHF | 87.5 - 108 MHz | - | - | FM radio broadcast band |
| III | VHF | 174 - 230 MHz | 5-12 | 7 MHz | Analogue television 1 |
| IV | UHF | 470 - 581 MHz | 21-34 | 8 MHz | Analogue television |
| V | UHF | 582 - 960 MHz | 35-81 | 8 MHz | Analogue television 2 |
| VI | SHF | 11.7 - 12.7 GHz | - | ? | DBS, astronomy |
| VII | ? | ? | - | ? | reserved |
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At present, band III is used for digital radio (T-DAB) rather than
for digital television.
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In Europe, band V runs from 582 to 862 MHz. The rest is
used for mobile communication.
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The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) uses
different designators for the various frequency bands, which is mainly
based on (suitability for) radar applications.
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| Band | Frequency | Remark | Wiki |
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| HF | 3 - 30 MHz | SW AM broadcast, amateur | ➤ |
| VHF | 30 - 300 MHz | TV, broadcast radio, 2-way radio, amateur | ➤ |
| UHF | 300 - 3000 MHz | TV, radar, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, 2-way radio, amateur | ➤ |
| L | 1 - 2 GHz | Mobile, satellite, air, military, amateur, DAB | ➤ |
| S | 2 - 4 GHz | Radar, satellite, phones, ISM, microwave ovens, WiFi | ➤ |
| C | 4 - 8 GHz | Satellite, Wi-Fi,phones, radar, weather radar | ➤ |
| X | 8 - 12 GHz | Radar, DBS, space comms, imaging radar | ➤ |
| Ku | 12 - 18 GHz | Satellite television, speed radar | ➤ |
| K | 18 - 27 GHz | Short range applications, amateur 2 | ➤ |
| Ka | 26.5 - 40 GHz | Satellite uplink, close-range radar, speed radar, 5G | ➤ |
| V | 40 - 75 GHz | High-capacity short-range LOS data, inter-satellite 1 | ➤ |
| W | 75 - 110 GHz | Radar, heat ray, weapon detection, in-space comms | ➤ |
| mm | 30 - 300 GHz | 5G, radar, security | ➤ |
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IEEE band V ('vee') should not be confused with
ITU band V (five).
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The K-band was originally one contiguous band, which has meanwhile been
split into Ku, K and Ka. The reason for this is that
the centre part (18 - 26.5 GHz) is hardly usable due to absorption by water
vapour in the atmosphere. It is only useful for short-range applications.
➤ Wikipedia
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NATO Cold War band designators
obsolete
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| Band | Frequency | Remark |
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| A | 0 - 250 MHz | VLF, LF, MF, HF, VHF — fixed/mobile comms, navigation |
| B | 250 - 500 MHz | VHF, UHF — fixed/mobile comms, satellite, meteo, nav. |
| C | 500 - 1000 MHz | UHF — fixed/mobile comms, radiolocation |
| D | 1 - 2 GHz | UHF — aeronautical comms, radio navigation, satellite |
| E | 2 - 3 GHz | UHF — fixed/mobile comms, radiolocation, nav. satellite |
| F | 3 - 4 GHz | SHF — radiolocation |
| G | 4 - 6 GHz | SHF — fixed/mobile comms, radiolocation |
| H | 6 - 8 GHz | SHF — fixed/mobile satellite |
| I | 8 - 10 GHz | SHF — radiolocation |
| J | 10 - 20 GHz | SHF — fixed/mobile comms, radiolocation |
| K | 20 - 40 GHz | SHF, EHF — fixed/mobile satellite, radiolocation |
| L | 40 - 60 GHz | EHF — fixed/mobile satellite, radiolocation |
| M | 60 - 100 GHz | EHF — fixed/mobile satellite, radiolocation |
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| N | 100 - 200 GHz | US Military / SACLANT |
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© Crypto Museum. Created: Wednesday 21 March 2012. Last changed: Wednesday, 11 June 2025 - 09:05 CET.
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