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For background information please check my previous post.

 

One late night, not so long ago, Gwraspe was transcribing Pip messages I had recorded and I was working on this blog post, updating schedules based on my notes and observations. We were exchanging a few words here and there about the Pip, until Gwraspe said that he noticed a pattern in Dlya messages - and indeed there was! So I started to compare the broadcast times of messages that did not fit the pattern he saw, and pretty soon we had the whole Dlya system figured out, two different schedules complete with predictable message content!

In this post I'll do a proper introduction of different Pip message types, and after that I am proud to present the best results that have come from Pip research so far - the Dlya schedule exposé.

 

 

Introduction to Pip messages
I touched the issue of different message types in my previous post, but for the sake of completeness I will include all information here so it'll be easily accessible in one place.
Pip has so far sent two different types of messages, which I refer to as Dlya type and real messages.

Для (Dlya)
Dlya messages start with the word Для ( Dlya) pronounced as one word, not read phonetically like all other callsigns as dlya itself is not a callsign, none are given to identify Pip in this type of message. Dlya means "for" and is followed by reading of 10 callsigns, each 4 characters long, all read phonetically. These messages end with a question, Как слышно? ("Kak slyshno?"), which could roughly be translated as "How hear?". Message format is always the same. It is also worth noting that Pip's sister station S32 (Squeaky Wheel) is also known to send Dlya messages. Newly discovered schedules and call sign rotations will be elaborated on later in this post.
Based on facts presented above, it is likely that these messages are meant as a propagation test and the remote station gives their reception report back to Pip on some other frequency or by other technical means.

Real messages
Messages sent at random times with a real callsign (one that is phonetically read) are considered real content in contrast to Dlyas which run on a schedule and don't carry a callsign. Real messages have been intercepted 3 times during this monitoring period, all of them with a 8С1Щ (8S1Shch) callsign, but other callsigns have been noted in the past. Message format appears to vary with a callsign. Pip's sister station S32 (Squeaky Wheel) seems to send a similar type message 4 minutes after Pip has sent one, which along with the Dlya connection makes the station worth researching.
Gwraspe would like to point out that he finds it likely that the different stations called for in Dlya messages are the stations that would also have messages broadcast to the rest of that network on their behalf. We have witnessed real messages being given with the callsign 8С1Щ (8S1Shch) which has also been included in Dlya messages many times.
Format for a 8С1Щ (8S1Shch) is as follows: 8С1Щ 2fg 3fg CODEWORD 2fg 2fg 2fg 2fg Приём!.

 

 

 

Everything you've always wanted to know about Dlyas, but were too afraid to ask
This information applies to Pip messages sent after the 3 ^rd of November and is valid up to the publication date of this post. Schedule previous to that did not have a similar type 2 Dlya, and October messages are explained later in this article.

 

Types of Dlya
Dlya messages can be split on two different subtypes based on their content and schedules. Message format is the same on both types.

.	Type 1	Type 2
Schedule	Morning and evening schedule	Daytime schedule
Sendings	Twice a day, one in the morning and one in the evening	Started on the November 4 th , on average one message every 2,33 days.
Content	A rotating pool of four groups, rare unique message	Same message every time

 

 

Type 1

Type 1 messages are the most common ones, sent twice a day with only few exceptions. One message is sent in the morning schedule and the other one in the evening schedule. Morning schedule has been observed to run from 0216z to 0404z, evening schedule from 1638z to 1844z.
Type 1 sends a Dlya message with 10 call signs and repeats this message every 4 sendings. Repeated messages are identical. This pattern has been observed on 5 full rotations, spanning 14 days with only two exceptions, suggesting that this rotation is fairly stable.
First exception to this rotation was noted on the 12 ^nd , when an irregular message replaced message number 4. Another exception occurred on the 17 ^th , with another unique message replacing message number 1. This rotation has only been in effect for this month and with few odd messages observed it will surely change in the future and will be a rewarding research subject.

 

The current call sign pool is as follows:

Number	Cyrillic	Latin	Sample
1	Для ХДЗ1 ЗЬ1Б 27ЩЬ ЦИ9В Н1ДУ 53ОБ 78МВ З6МА ОЬНЕ A3ПC	Dlya HDZ1 Z'1B 27Shch'CI9V N1DU 53OB 78MV Z6MA O'NYe A3PS
2	Для ЩГЙП 8ЦЩЙ TЗЛM ФЫ5Е Ф61H 37ЦH MУДР 7BHЩ Ж7HЖ ЫMA5	Dlya ShchGJP 8CShchJ TZLM FY5Ye F61N 37CN MUDR 7VNShch Zh7NZh YMA5
3	Для ВТХ3 АГCТ ЬУ1Б ОСОГ БО6Ц Ф56Щ 9ГСА ЖВЗА 4РВЗ 3ВСЬ	Dlya VTH3 AGST 'U1B OSOG BO6C F56Shch 9GSA ZhBZU 4RVZ 3VS'
4	Для В2MЗ ЖCК4 CБ7З TAЗ7 ПЫЦM Ы8BM 8MУO TУЗP 5Й7Щ BЛДХ	Dlya V2MZ ZhSK4 SB7Z TAZ7 PYCM Y8VM 8MUO TUZR 5J7Shch VLDH

 

Type 1 messages this month:

 

 

Type 2

Type 2 messages have so far been sent on average every 2,33 days. Due to limited amount of data this schedule will become more accurate once more is known. This schedule started on November 4 ^th , before this there were different types of "odd" messages along with type 1. Messages received so far have come between 1312z and 1440z. Message content is always the same, and callsigns used in the type 2 message haven't been heard on type 1. Due to Pip's low frequency and schedule running during the day the messages are best heard in the east which might suggest that the intended recipient reside there.

Type 2 message content:

Для ВКЫ1 ХЦЛФ 61ХЖ ЗБИЛ Л7О6 ВЬЗЬ НЛЦЕ 8Ь4O AУИ8 2ЗЩН
Dlya VKY1 HCLF 61HZh ZBIL L7O6 V'Z' NLCYe 8'4O AUI8 2ZShchN

Sample message, 6^th of November, 1423z

Type 2 messages received so far:

Date	Time
04.11.2011	1316z
06.11.2011	1423z
10.11.2011	1337z
12.11.2011	1440z
14.11.2011	1312z
16.11.2011	1325z

 

 

 

Dlya schedule

In this scatter graph you will see all messages received on Pip's nighttime frequency (3756 kHz) since the 22 ^nd of October and predictable timeframes when it is likely to receive a Dlya message.

 

 

OCTOBER
Speculation on October Dlya pool, rotation and hybrid messages.

It seems likely that the call signs Pip calls out for are changed monthly. Clear rotation has been established in November, but since the monitoring only started on the 22 ^nd of October the schedule for that month is partially speculative. Below I will present the facts and the speculation on how the schedule could've run throughout October.

Hybrid messages

On the October schedule we see typical type 1 Dlya messages working on pools of 3, rotating steadily. But on top of that there are messages that are of same format but which change one call sign on each sending. These are what I call hybrid messages. These messages were only seen twice during the October schedule (which ran to the first days of November), but it is likely that they were more common on the daytime frequency (5448 kHz).
Below are both hybrid messages, differing call signs are in bold.

1^st November 2011, 0317z
Для ЬMCB A3ПC ЫГЙЬ 12ЦИ 79AЙ ПЬХЩ 6ЕХБ ЬУЕ8 ЦП3Ь ЩT3O
Dlya 'MSV A3PS YGJ' 12CI 79AJ P'HShch 6YeHB 'UYe8 CP3' ShchT3O

3^rd November 2011, 0330z
Для ЬMCB ЫГЙЬ 12ЦИ 79AЙ ПЬХЩ 6ЕXБ ЬУЕ8 ЦП3Ь ЩT3O ЦИХC
Dlya 'MSV YGJ' 12CI 79AJ P'HShch 6YeHB 'UYe8 CP3' ShchT3O CIHS

Interestingly the A3ПC (A3PS) call sign was adopted to regular November schedule and runs regularly in the 1 ^st call sign pool. The differing call sign on the other message has not been seen since.

 

So why weren't any hybrid messages intercepted before the 1^st of November?

Looking at the Dlya schedules established so far, the timespan in which messages are sent is over two hours. Pip underwent a schedule change on the night of the 31 ^st of October and 1 ^st of November, extending it's night time broadcast time from 1430z-0330z to 1300z-0430z. The very day this change was made the first hybrid message was heard at 0317z - conincidentally this message would've fit in the old schedule, but it is possible that previous messages had been sent just 11 minutes later, as Pip has the tendency to change to daytime frequency 2 minutes before schedule.

Is it possible that there were 5 hybrid messages in such a short timespan?

Yes, it seems possible. The average frequency of type 2 Dlya messages in November (which could be analoguous to hybrid messages in October) was one message every 2,33 days. The average frequency for hybrid messages proposed in this theory would be one every 3 days.

Why weren't all type 1 Dlya messages caught?

There were no days with 3 Dlya messages in October, so I am working on the hypothesis that on most days the morning message was sent on the daytime frequency due to a different day/night schedule Pip was on. However, there are instances where both type 1 morning and evening messages were sent on the night time slot, so the rotation seems to be constant.

And now that I've presented the rationale for my assumptions, here are the Dlya sendings up to the 4 ^th of November when the regular November call sign pool began.

Of course this is mostly speculation and we'll never know for sure (unless someone wants to leak information to tucana@priyom.org ), but I hope you found it an entertaining read.

 

 

 

Cheat sheet

Frequency	Daytime	Nighttime
.	5448	3756
Schedule	0430z-1300z	1300z-0430z
Dlya schedule	From	To
Type 1 - Morning	0216z	0404z
Type 1 - Evening	1638z	1844z
Type 2 - Daytime	1312z	1440z

 

 

I'll keep on recording Pip and posting an update every few weeks when I have more data to present, plus I have collected a veritable cornucopia of Pip trivia from my monitoring so I'll add a couple extra chapters on each post to keep you interested. Also, Gwraspe and I are researching something else that goes much deeper too and if things go well you can expect to read about that by the end of the year, so stay tuned!

 

---
Tucana
tucana@priyom.org