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← USA Cold War CIA CK-8 →
HF spy radio set · 2-20 MHz
- under construction
QRC-222
is a compact solid-state spy radio transceiver for the
short wave radio bands between 2 MHz and 20 MHz, developed in the early
1960s in
the USA,
either by the CIA or the USAF.
It is suitable for the reception of CW and AM signals, and for
the transmission of standard and high-speed
morse code signals (CW),
for which the CIA's CK-8 burst encoder (GRA-71) was used.
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The device measures approx. 21 x 16 x 5.5 cm and weights 2140 grams.
without the green TX plug-in that is shown in the image on the right.
The receiver is freely adjustable between 2 and 20 MHz, but can also be
driven by a crystal.
It is suitable for AM (phone) and
CW (morse code).
It has a rather uncommon 1.75 MHz IF frequency.
The transmitter is crystal operated,
but requires the use of a matching band unit,
or plug-in, that has to be installed in the gap
at the front side, together with the selected crystal.
The output power of the transmitter is approx. 3 Watts [1].
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There are indications that the set was developed by the US Air Force
Research and Development Laboratory Rome ADC
(now: Rome Laboratory), under the code name
Code-Clarion. As it was urgently needed and only a small number of units
were required, it was developed under the USAF
Quick Reaction Capability program
(QRC),
and was assigned project number QRC-222
[3].
In some cases, QRC projects were jointly carried out between the USAF
and the CIA. ➤ More
In his 1993 book – CIA Special Weapons & Equipment:
Spy Devices of the Cold War – Keith Melton identifies the set as RS-8
[4].
It is doubtful however, whether this is the correct CIA designator, as
no documents have been found to confirm this. Furthermore, the designator
RS-8 1 is used by the CIA for a completely different device (a low-power
homing beacon), that dates back to 1952.
It is unknown how many units were made, but it is likely that it was
between 10 and 100 units. None of the devices that have turned up over
the years have a printed model or serial number, but some carried a
DYMO label with the identification QRC-222
followed by a serial number [2].
These labels were removed from the set featured here, so we can not
determine its serial number.
The plug-in units carry a
handwritten label with an inspection date
in August/September 1965.
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By the mid-1960s, the CIA was no longer using single-digit designators,
and had moved onto two and three digit ones. Nevertheless, it is entirely
possible that the designator RS-8 was assigned to the radio set by a
different CIA department, or that it was used as an intermediate name.
The power supply unit of the set that is visible in the photographs in the
book [4], carries a dymo label with the identification QRC-222.
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The diagram below gives an overview of all controls and connections on
the body of the radio. At the front
are two circular sockets for connection
of an external key
or keyer, and a 12V/24V DC power source.
Antenna, counterpoise and
earphones are connected to the
terminals at the front right corner.
This should be enough to operate the receiver.
If the transmitter has to be used as well,
a suitable plug-in unit with a
quarz crystal
should be installed in the wide slot at the front.
The receiver is suitable for AM and CW signals, and can be VFO or crystal
controlled, using the MODE selector at the top right. The frequency span
of 2-20 MHz is divided over four bands that are selected with a rotary
knob at the right side. Another rotary selector (towards the front) is used
to select the required mode of operation. It has three settings:
RECEIVE, OFF and TRANSMIT.
The transmitter is suitable for the transmission of CW (morse) signals only.
To match the antenna to the transmitter, an external
antenna tuner should be used, which is missing from our set.
Once the transmitter is correctly setup, the CK-8 burst encoder
is used for sending a pre-recorded message at high speed (burst).
These messages were usually encrypted with a
One-Time Pad.
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The abbreviation QRC is used by both the US
Central Intelligence Agence (CIA)
and the United States Air Force (USAF), and can have several meanings. Which
of these meanings is applicable to the QRC-222 device featured here, in not
entirely clear. The following meanings are known:
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- Quick Reaction Capability
Both the CIA and the USAF have been running a Quick Reaction Capability
program for several years. It allowed them — by special directive — to quickly
respond to emerging adversary threats, by developing and building
small quantities of special equipment and allocating the necessary funds
for that. In some cases — for example with the U-2 spy plane project —
these programs were jointly carried out by the CIA and the USAF.
- Quick Reaction Contract
Since the mid-1950s, the CIA had a special division that dealt with contracts
for the development of equipment that was urgently needed in small quantities,
and that could not wait until permission had been granted through the
regular (slow) channels. In the mid-1960s, this division was moved to the
the Office of ELINT (OEL) at CIA headquarters.
- Quick Reaction Communication
The expression QRC was also used by the CIA for brief and or urgent messages
and replies, similar to a telegram. In that case QRC meant Quick Reaction
Communication. It is unlikely that this meaning of QRC was used in connection
with the QRC-222 transceiver.
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Which of the above meanings is applicable to the QRC-222 is not entirely
clear, and even within the CIA, the meaning of the abbreviation QRC was
sometimes diffuse.
Judging from surviving CIA documents about other QRC programs,
it is likely that it was developed under the Quick Reaction Capability
program (1), but it might also have been funded through a
Quick Reaction Contract (2).
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Originally, the QRC-222 sets were supplied in a metal briefcase,
that was compartmented in such a way that each item had it own
bay, including the telescopic antenna and the mains PSU.
The original metal briefcase is shown in a picture from John Pitts
of 1998 [2]. It is missing from our set, but it is currently uncertain
whether it was ever supplied with it.
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The image on the right shows the bare QRC-222 transceiver, which is the heart
of the radio set. It is shown here without a TX plug-in and without
the mains power supply unit (PSU).
In our case, the radio was supplied with a power cable that enables it
to be operated from a common external 12V/24V DC power source,
such as the battery of a car or a truck. At the front right are the terminals
for connection of the antenna
and an earpiece.
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Transmitter plug-in units
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Each transceiver came with a metal storage case, in which four transmitter
plug-in units and 12 quarz crystals were stowed. It is shown in the image
on the right (with the top lid removed).
The four plug-ins
range from 2 to 13 MHz, so it is possible that a fifth
one is missing, or that the range of the transmitter was limited to 13 MHz.
➤ List of plug-ins
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The radio set was usually supplied with a power supply unit (PSU)
that allows the transceiver to be powered from the AC mains (90-240V)
or a DC source between 10 and 17V.
The PSU is missing from the set featured here, but a suitable cable for
powering it from a 12V/24V DC source is present. This cable is shown
in the image on the right. It is possible that this set was used without
a mains PSU.
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The transceiver was supplied with a suitable pair of headphones,
or a simple earpiece, such as the one shown in the image on the right.
The earphone should be connected to the
contact terminals at the front right edge
of the receiver, by means of the two straight contact
pins at the end of its cable.
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For emergency purposes, for example when the
CK-8 (GRA-71) burst encoder was not
available or was broken, it was possible to connect a standard morse key,
and send a message at regular speed, at the risk of being intercepted and/or
located by the adversary.
The Speed-X morse key, shown in the image on the right, was issued as part
of the kit. It has a fixed cable
that can be connected directly to the 3-pin
socket at the front panel, instead of the
high-speed CK-8 keyer.
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The transceiver was supplied with two antenna systems: a vertical one — consisting
of a ground spike, a loading coil and a 14-segment telescopic antenna —
and a wire antenna, consisting of three spools with antenna wire.
The vertical antenna has instructions for adjusting it to the desired frequency
printed on its exterior. Unfortunately, it is currently
missing from our set, just like the separate antenna tuner.
An example of a wire antenna is shown in the image on the right.
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In order to match the antenna to the transmitter, a simple external
antenna tuner, or matching unit, was connected between the
terminals of the transmitter and the actual antenna.
Unfortunately, this antenna tuner is currently missing from our set,
so we are unable to show any picures of it.
No image available
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For connection to the peripheral equipment and to the outside world,
a collection of cables was supplied with the radio set. In a minimum
configuration the following should be present:
If the mains PSU was supplied, then a power cable for that should be
present as well. Note that the PWR and KEY cables have rather
strange plugs,
which might be difficult to find.
➤ List of cables
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Operating instructions
wanted
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At present, no operating instructions, service documentation,
historical release papers,
or any other form of documentation about this radio set is known.
Please help us expand this page, by providing any missing piece of
information.
➤ Contact us
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Images of the transceiver's interior are not yet available.
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The diagram below shows the pinout of the 5-pin power socket at the front
of the radio, when looking into the socket.
The unit can be powered by 12V for RX and TX, or 12V for RX and 24V for TX,
using the external power cable
that is supplied as part of the kit. Note that the 12V line is mandatory,
and that the 24V line is optional. It is used for high-power TX only.
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- ?
- ?
- (+) 12V input RX/TX
- (+) 24V input TX
- ?
- Ground (0V)
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The 3-pin socket at the front side of the radio, is for connection of
an external morse key or a high-speed burst encoder. For a simple morse
key, only pins B and C are used. When connecting the
CK-8 burst encoder,
pin A supplies +12V power to the keyer. The pinout is as follows:
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- (+) 12V out (to CK-8 keyer)
- Ground
- Key in (connects to ground)
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When the QRC-222 radio set was used in combination with the
CK-8 burst encoder (GRA-71),
it could be connected directly, without the need
to insert the KA-3 keyer adapter. This is possible because the
transceiver supplies +12V DC through the cable, as shown in the
diagram below.
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Device Spy radio set Designator QRC-222 User span class Transmitter ➤ Crystal-based Frequency 2 — 20 MHz ➤ in five bands Modulation CW Output 3 Watts
Receiver VFO or ➤ crystal-based Frequency 2 — 20 MHz ➤ in four bands Modulation AM, CW
Dimensions 21 x 16 x 5.5 cm Weight 2140 grams
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- 2 - 3.5 MHz
- 3.5 - 6 MHz
- 6 - 11 MHz
- 11 - 20 MHz
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The following plug-ins were found with our set.
The dates in the second column are the inspection dates,
that are pencil-written on a label at the bottom of the plug-in.
We assume that the transmitter has 5 bands, and that the plug in for
the fifth band is missing from our set.
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2 - 3 MHz 30 August 1965 3 - 5 MHz 13 September 1965 5 - 8 MHz 30 August 1965 8 - 13 MHz 30 August 1965 13 - 20 MHz missing
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It is likely that the transceiver came with four sets of crystals:
four for the transmitter (green) and four for the receiver (yellow).
Note that the actual frequency of a receiver crystal is 1.75 MHz higher
than what is on the label. All crystals are used in series resonance
mode.
The following crystals were found with our set, some of which are unmarked
and were probably added later:
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3.176 MHz yellow RX 3.176 MHz green TX
4.085 MHz yellow RX 4.085 MHz green TX
7.430 MHz yellow RX 7.430 MHz green TX
11.00 MHz yellow RX 11.00 MHz green TX
3.260 MHz unmarked TX 3.265 MHz unmarked TX 4.038 MHz unmarked TX 4.820 MHz unmarked TX
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The following cables were supplied with a complete set.
The ones shown in red are currently missing from the set
in our collection.
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A complete QRC-222 set consisted of the components listed below [2].
The items shown in red are currently missing from our set.
If you have any of these available, please
contact us.
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QRC
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(1) Quick Reaction Contract
CIA expression for a Quick Reaction Contract, to be carried out by the QRC
department. In late 1964, this department was transferred to the
CIA's research and development department, but kept operating as an
autonomous unit.
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QRC
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(2) Quick Reaction Capability
USAF procurement program, aimed to quickly develop and aqcuire limited quantities
of special equipment in reaction to emerging enemy threats. Also
known as the Quick Reaction Capability Program.
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QRC
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(3) Quick Reaction Communication
Expression used by the CIA for quick and short messages and replies,
similar to a telegram.
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Rome ADC
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Rome Air Development Center
Research and development laboratory of the USAF.
Currently known as the Rome Laboratory.
➤ Wikipedia
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At present, there is very little information about the QRC-222 (RS-8) in the
public domain. The information presented on this page is pretty much everything
we could find about it. If you have any additional information or parts,
please contact us and help us expand this page.
We are currently looking for the following items:
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- Mains power supply unit (PSU)
- Telescopic antenna and mast
- Wire antennas
- Antenna tuner
Earpiece Speed-X morse key - Operating instructions
- Original storage case
- Documentation
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Any links shown in red are currently unavailable.
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© Crypto Museum. Created: Friday 08 December 2017. Last changed: Tuesday, 25 April 2023 - 06:00 CET.
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