BC-DX 789 05 Jan 2007 Private Verwendung der Meldun

a series of interviews with and statements by staffers, former and
present, on what Radio Bulgaria and the English Section have amounted to
in their personal lives. We are opening the door to what it has been like
to make good, English-speaking international radio in Sofia and lure great
numbers across the world to wish to discover more and more about Bulgaria.
Following listeners' questions about Amateur radio in Bulgaria in November
1957, then Radio Sofia's English staff men visited the Central Radio Club
in Sofia to gather some information. Dimiter Petrov happened to be there
and told them about the hobby along with live demonstrations. They asked
him to write about it in English for the Radio himself. Listeners'
response was very favourable and thus the DX programme was born November
17, 1957 as a monthly feature. Due to popular request, in June 1961 it
became a weekly.
As a matter of fact Radio Bulgaria's English DX programme has been not
only the longest running programme in the history of Bulgarian
broadcasting but in world terms too, notably second only to late Alistair
Cook's 58-year running "Letter from America".
Its writer and editor has invariably, for nearly fifty years, and without
fail, been Dimiter Petrov, a most handsome man, well read and bred, soft-
spoken, but always keeping at it hammer and thongs, radiating calm and
confidence, aristocratic looking Dimiter Petrov, LZ1AF, an industrial
designer by profession, whom we have been calling lovingly "DX Petrov".
On and for Radio Bulgaria I now give you DX Petrov and his views on the
strongest points of amateur radio.
DX Petrov: Although the bulk of our audience is broadcast listeners, BCLs,
my aim has been to introduce to them all aspects of this great and noble
hobby - Amateur Radio, that has contributed so much toward the technical
progress and spreading good will and friendship throughout the world, and
get them interested to join in. Amateur radio always comes to the rescue
at times of disaster like earthquakes, tsunami, hurricanes, when all other
communications are disabled. I'm lucky that I once ran a life-saving
operation, back in 1960, involving hams from several European countries
and the USA when a vital medicine was found and flown to Bulgaria within
24 hours.
Q: Nearly fifty years on the air seems like a lifetime. Would you have any
fascinating recollection that you'd like to share with us?
A: Back in 1969 I set out on a month's business trip to Singapore. Prior
to my departure, I managed to write only one DX programme in advance and
decided to write the next one at Athens Airport while waiting for my next
plane and post it from there. At that time there were no Internet and
laptops, so I sat down at a table in the transit area to write it in long-
hand. It was during the Colonels' regime in Greece, I evidently looked
very suspicious and a woman posing as a cleaner tried hard to look over my
shoulder and see what I was writing. Eventually I finished writing the
programme, placed it in an envelope, sealed and addressed it and looked
for where I could buy stamps. There was nothing around; it was a closed
transit area and I was not allowed to go outside!
The same happened at Cairo Airport transit area well after midnight and I
became worried that if posted from Singapore, most likely it would arrive
in Sofia too late!
Can you imagine how my heart leaped with joy, when in the morning, at
Bombay Airport, I heard a few men talking in Bulgarian! They turned out to
be medical doctors traveling from a symposium in Indonesia to another
symposium in Italy and gladly agreed to post the letter from Italy! And so
they did! Thus the DX programme was not interrupted!