Three Borders Amateur Radio Museum
Martin Butera (PT2ZDX – LU9EFO), together with Luiz García (PY5SG), director of the “Three Borders” Amateur Radio Museum
Introduction
Today I would like to take you on a trip to the south of Brazil, more precisely through the Brazilian city of Foz de Iguazú, so that together we can discover the incredible amateur radio museum of the three borders.
Located very close to the famous “Iguazú Falls”, which are undoubtedly one of the most important natural attractions in Brazil and Argentina, where more than 1,000,000 tourists visit the falls every year, it was not for nothing that it was the place chosen to meet me, with a friend from Barcelona, Spain, colleague Jose Vicente (EA3FLW), who joins me as a guest int his article.
There, together with Jose Vicente (EA3FLW), we met the guardian of these treasures, colleague Luiz García (PY5SG), who set up a museum in his own house, where he preserves the history and technological evolution of Brazilian and world amateur radio.
This article will be a journey in time, where we will learn a good part of the history of radio communications, presented by Luiz Garcia (PY5SG), an incredible host, very passionate about radio, who told us in detail about each piece of his magnificent collection. He not only opened the doors of his museum to us, but also of his house and told us very interesting aspects about his life.
His house, I must say, is an environment of art and culture, Luiz Garcia (PY5SG) is also passionate about old cars, aliens, Egyptian culture, orchids and so many other things.
All this makes this radio amateur a person without equal, who is also worth getting to know in this interview.
Let ‘s get started!!
Welcome to the Amateur Radio Museum of “The Three Frontiers”
MB: When was the museum inaugurated?
Luiz García (PY5SG): The museum will be celebrating its 15th anniversary this year; it was inaugurated on May 23, 2009.
I want to highlight that the museum, beyond being in my house, belongs to the CRAFI (Radio Ham Club of Foz do Iguacu), which is also in my house (laughs). Here we also have the institution’s repeaters installed, next to a room or technical area of the club and a community FM station, called “Amistade 87.9 Mhz”.
MB: How is the museum’s collection composed?
Luiz García (PY5SG): First of all, I would like to highlight that all the equipment is donated by radio amateurs in the vast majority from 3 countries (Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay), the majority of all the transmitters and receivers are in operation, I repair them myself.
The idea of the museum is not to accumulate meaningless equipment, the idea of the museum is that each piece in the collection tells a story.
We have valuable pieces among them: transmitters, receivers and antennas that try to tell a story about the different stages of amateur radio, with a clear focus on national manufacturing or equipment that belonged to services of the city of Foz de Iguazú (Police, Firefighters, radio stations, etc.).
Of course we also have pieces and elements that tell the history of communications worldwide.
MB: What is the number of pieces in the museum’s collection?
Luiz García (PY5SG): Well, between transmitters, receivers and different accessories such as antennas, CW manipulators, microphones and everything related to radio, today we have almost a thousand cataloged pieces, we could have many more, but as I told you, the idea of the museum is not to accumulate, but to have quality equipment that tells a story.
MB: If you had to choose some pieces from the museum, the most important or interesting, what do you think they would be?
Luiz García (PY5SG): All the pieces that are exhibited in the museum are important to me, especially because the collection is thanks to donations from other radio amateurs. I have great respect for each piece.
The donated part, be it a transmitter, a receiver, a microphone, whatever, may be an easy-to-find commercial brand and model or home-built, but the interesting thing is that they belonged to other radio amateurs, many of whom were pioneers in our hobby, they marked a path for Brazilian, Argentina and Paraguay amateur radio. That’s why I don’t have favorite pieces, they are all important.
But of course I could tell you about some curious pieces, for example in the collection we have the first repeater in the city of Foz do Iguaçu, which belonged to the CRAFI (Clube de Radioamadores de Foz do Iguaçu), the club was born in the mid-70s and it was installed in the facilities of the 1st border battalion, back in 1982, in a pioneering manner, the first VHF repeater station was installed on the frequency of 146,940-600 Khz, with the call sign PY5FOZ. Today it seems common to talk about a repeater but at the beginning of the 80s it was something of great regional importance.
Another curious piece is the donation of a radio amateur from Paraguay, it is a small solar receiver called “Go-Ye”, these radios were produced by a Canadian company and were distributed in order to tune into Christian radio stations around the world.
Go-Ye radios are tuned to any frequency on the dial at the request of churches or associated affiliates, it was undoubtedly one of the most important missionary actions in the Americas.
Another curious piece is what could be defined as the first cell phone prior to the one created by Martin Cooper. It is a transmitter that was used to repair telephone lines, it was a suitcase, which was connected to an antenna and weighed between 4 and 5 kilos.
The first phone was the Motorola DynaTAC 8000X, launched in 1983 by a group of Motorola engineers, however, it was 10 years earlier, in 1973, when Martin Cooper, a company executive, made the first call from a mobile phone, using a prototype of the DynaTAC 8000X, what here in South America is called a brick (laughs).
Then we have many pieces of equipment that were manufactured by Embraer, the Brazilian Aeronautics Company.
The company produces commercial, military and executive aircraft, was founded in 1969 and currently ranks third in manufacturing worldwide, behind Boeing and Airbus.
We also have many pre-GPS (Global Positioning System) maritime transmitters andreceivers, such as older sonar radar receivers.
We have car radio receivers from the late 1940s, the famous “Pontiac” ones, which were medium stinky (AM) receivers, totally tube-based.
Of course in the collection we have some “Delta”, which is the best known of all the manufacturers of national equipment for radio amateurs in Brazil.
We have many military equipment used in the Second World War and other war conflicts.
In short, there are many curious pieces, the most beautiful thing is that they all tell us a story.
MB: What can you tell me about the technical area, the room attached to the museum?
Luiz García (PY5SG): The attached room is nothing more than my radio shack (laughs), which ends up also being a space that members of the CRAFI (Foz do Iguaçu Radio Ham Club) can use.
In the room we have many of the institution’s analog and digital repeaters, as well as equipment from RENER (Rede Nacional de Emergência de Radioamadores do Brasil).
There is also a small laboratory where some of the museum’s equipment is repaired and that serves as a small workshop for club members, where they learn electronics and radio frequency concepts in general.
MB: The museum, in addition to being in your house (laughs), is named after a strategic area, such as the three borders. How could you explain to the reader the importance of this location?
Luiz García (PY5SG): The museum is located without a doubt, in an incredible area, we are very close to the Iguazú Falls, one of the new “Seven Natural Wonders of the World”.
For readers who do not know the area, I can tell you that “The Triple Border” is located at the border crossing between Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay.
On the Argentine side is the city of Puerto Iguazú, on the Paraguayan side are the cities of Presidente Franco and Ciudad del Este and finally we are in the city of Foz do Iguazu.
The borders of these three countries, in this area, follow the course of the Iguazú and Paraná rivers.
MB: How many people have already visited the museum? And how can you get to know this museum?
Luiz García (PY5SG): Throughout these 15 years since its inauguration, thousands of tourists have already passed through the museum who come mainly to visit the Iguazú Falls, many are radio amateurs and many others are curious people who want to know about our hobby.
We have a huge list of visitors in our records, mainly of course from Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay, but we also have many visitors from the United States, several European countries and Asia.
The museum is included in the circuit of tourist attractions that Foz do Iguazú offers, but since it is in a private house, the visit must be scheduled.
We are located on Silvio Américo Sasdelli Avenue, number 2843, city of Foz de Iguazú, you can contact the cell phone +55 (45) 98811-1579 or you can also send us an email to the following address:
MB: In the museum space, there is also an FM station, what can you tell me about it?
Luiz García (PY5SG): The radio was promoted by the “Association of Young Iguaçu Broadcasting Entrepreneurs”, which is a non-profit civil association with the objective of cultural and educational purposes.
It is called Amizade from the Portuguese language which means friendship, it works on the FM band at the 87.9 Mhz frequency. It is a community station, currently by law we can onlyoperate with a maximum of 25 watts and we cannot have the antenna more than 30 meters high, the clear range is quite limited, but through the Internet we manage to have global coverage.
Economically we are very limited because by law we cannot have commercial advertising, so it is difficult to obtain resources.
I think Brazil arrived a little late to the world of community radio. Most of Latin America already had good legislation for the sector before the Brazilian law, passed in 1998. The regulations for community radio stations in Brazil establish very strict parameters and carrying out transmissions without authorization or increasing power is still a problem. Serious crime and Anatel (Agência Nacional de Telecomunicações do Brasil), is responsible for this supervision and is very strict in compliance.
Beyond all this, radio works as a permanent practice for those who like the world of radio broadcasting and want to take their first steps. We broadcast educational programs and good regional music.
MB: How can you contact Radio Amizade?
Luiz García (PY5SG): Well you can listen to us through the dial in the city of Foz do Iguazú at 87.9 Mhz, you can also call us by phone + 55 (45) 9 3300 8844, write an email to the address: and of course listen to us online anywhere on the planet, from the site: https://www.radioamizadefoz.com.br
MB: Well, I would like to know more about you, I know that you worked in the security area of the Itaipu power plant, what can you tell me about this?
Luiz García (PY5SG): The Itaipu hydroelectric plant, also called ITAIPU Binacional, is a binational hydroelectric plant that is located between the cities of Hernandarias, Paraguay and Foz do Iguaçu, here in Brazil, on the Paraná River, on the border between both countries.
ITAIPU Binacional, operational since 1984, holds the title of “largest energy producer on the planet” with 103,098,366 MWh produced in 2015. It is also the dam with the highest accumulated production, with 2.5 billion MWh56 789 since the beginning of the operation.
The ITAIPU dam has an installed electrohydraulic generation capacity of 14,000 MW, with 20 generating turbines of 700 MW and its construction required a cost of 36 billion dollars for the two partner countries. It has long been the largest hydroelectric power station in the world, until 2011 when it was surpassed by the “Three Gorges” dam in China.
At ITAIPU, I worked as a technical administrator of the Electronic Camera Security System. During its beginnings, being part of the Institutional Security body, I also worked at the Itaipú Technology Park.
In addition, I later worked on other security camera systems at the private and municipal level in the city of Foz do Iguaçu and also setting up cameras for the Brazilian federal police.
I am a Communications Electronics Technician from UNITEL/MOTOROLA in Brazil and a specialist in thermal cameras, from (FLIR Brazil) and of course a radio amateur since the 1980s (laughs).
MB: Upon entering the museum we can see some old cars and I know there is a very special one, which has to do with your work at the plant. What can you tell us about this?
Luiz García (PY5SG): Well, there is a car that is very special for thousands and it is the replica of the Volkswagen beetle from Itaipu. As I told you, I worked for 31 years in security at the Itaipú power plant and another 8 years at the Itaipú Technology Park (PTI). In the beginning, the cars we had for security were the Volkswagen brand beetles.
I was able to fulfill a dream by transforming a 1974 Beetle into an exact replica of the Itaipu security vehicles.
I am passionate about old cars, we Brazilians have an affection for the Volkswagen brand, in
particular for its beetles and kombis.
MB: Now I would like to ask you about other aspects of your life. I see that in your house you have quite a few objects that refer to the UFO phenomenon. It is said that in Brazil there are a huge number of anecdotes and stories to tell, there are even many testimonies of people who had abductions or direct contact with aliens. I would like to ask you with great respect, did you have any experience of that type?
Luiz García (PY5SG): I think that in today’s time, it is much easier to talk about this topic and not be classified as crazy, this was thanks to the release of ufological files in recent years in several countries, including Great Britain, France and Brazil, but Society still owes an open and high-level debate on this issue.
Of course, first of all I want to clarify that my life did not change because I had an extraterrestrial contact, nor do I consider myself a special or different person, but yes, it was thanks to a process of hypnotic regression therapy, that I was able to discover that a particular fact what happened to me as a child had to do with being “abducted by a spaceship.”
Later, during my years of work at the ITAIPU plant, it was common to record UFOs (Unidentified Flying Objects) on cameras, what we all commonly call “Flying Saucers.”
Today there are some open and public records of the Brazilian Air Force, which are no longer classified as confidential, that mention UFOs in Brazilian airspace and many were recorded in this city.
Foz de Iguazú is among the cities with the greatest testimonies of the UFO phenomenon in the world, this is because every water site, that is, rivers, lakes, lagoons, ponds, dams, is conducive to the presence of UFOs and of course I I live next to the Iguazú Falls and the ITAIPU power plant, imagine if I have seen ships (laughs).
Not for nothing, here in the city of Foz de Iguazú, one of the largest meetings on UFOs takes place, which is the world forum of Ufology.
For all Japanese readers who are now reading this article, I would very much like to recommend “The Legend of Utsuro-bune”, the UFO that landed in Japan in 1803.
UFO sightings have occurred for centuries, before they could be captured on cameras and before there was any logical explanation to deny or confirm the phenomena. They were just myths.
There is a Japanese legend about the day a UFO arrived on the country’s shores in the form of a ship and a woman.
It is said that on February 2, 1803, in the province of Hitachi, current Ibaraki, Japan, an elegant but mysterious ship surprised the local fishermen. But even more shocking was when a woman got off the boat.
I won’t tell the whole story, do your own research, it’s not difficult to go to Google (laughs).
MB: Now I would like to ask you about something in particular, when you enter the museum there are some Egyptian hieroglyphs on the walls and when you also enter your house, in the main room you have an extensive collection of Egyptian pieces. Where does it come from or how did your passion for Egypt come about?
Luiz García (PY5SG): The civilization of Ancient Egypt was one of the most powerful and fascinating in history.
I was lucky enough to travel and visit several countries before Egypt, but I am a faithful believer in the connection that exists with places that are not known. From a very young age and without even knowing where he was located, he dreamed of the pyramids of Egypt.
For different reasons, I postponed that trip, until in April 2019, together with my wife Ana Maria, I decided to fulfill that dream.
Egypt is Wonderful, I was able to see the cities of Cairo, Giza, Aswan and Luxor.
I cannot explain in words the joy in the heart of touching the ground of the place you always dreamed of. When I saw the pyramids, the jump that my heart made when I saw them hasno explanation. The Cairo Museum also amazed me with the collection of history they have from the oldest papyri to 2 royal mummies to the large collection of Tutankhamun.
The pyramids, the sculptures, the camels, entering the main pyramid and feeling that energy, everything seems like a dream, and when you realize that it is reality, your reality at that moment, you understand that you can achieve anything you want.
I am grateful to God, to Life, to my wife who accompanied me, for all this experience and making this trip.
MB: Why do you think Ancient Egypt is linked to extraterrestrials?
Luiz García (PY5SG): First of all I would like to tell you that my passion for Egypt goes far beyond the connection to the UFO phenomenon.
But of course there is an undeniable link between the Ancient Egyptian Empire and extraterrestrials.
Without a doubt, the Egyptian pyramids continue to raise numerous questions for science, how these giant tombs were built at that time, many believe that it was with the help of extraterrestrial technology.
Then there are some hieroglyphs that literally show figures that could be interpreted as flying vehicles.
There are also those who maintain that the English archaeologist Sir William Petrie kept mummies of alien origin in his private collection. Some even believe that these pieces currently rest in a secret chamber of the Rockefeller Museum in Jerusalem.
Another phenomenon could be “Electricity”, a rumor claims that the ancient Egyptians would have used electrical energy, thousands of years before its official discovery.
Anyway, of course there is a connection between Egypt and extraterrestrials, but I repeat my passion and interest goes beyond that, we are talking about the most durable and refined of the cultures that the world has known, with some four millennia of history, twice as long as Christianity has been in force for.
MB: Finally, I would like to ask you about orchids. You have a very beautiful garden in your house. What does it mean to have so many orchids in your house?
Luiz García (PY5SG): Orchids are my wife Ana Maria’s hobby, of course I also take care of them (laughs).
Plants, such as orchids and bonsai, present in Japan, represent the beauty of nature and transmit a message of love and care.
Thus ended this visit to the amateur radio museum of the three borders and the interview with the great colleague Luiz García (PY5SG) and of course we had time to see the great “Iguazú Falls”.
Martin Butera (PT2ZDX – LU9EFO), with his wife Ligia, at the Iguazú Falls
This interview is completed with a QR code, please point your cell phone and see in video images a tour of the amateur radio museum of “The Three Borders”
