Beginnings

December 22 1948
It was on this day that a small 2 kW shortwave transmitter was officially inaugurated at Liverpool in New South Wales under the Australian callsign VLI.  A few days earlier, local radio listeners noted test broadcasts from the new transmitter on several different channels in the international shortwave bands.

The large ABC radio station located at Liverpool on the southern edge of the city of Sydney was established in the year 1938 for mediumwave coverage of Australia's largest metropolis.  The two main transmitters carry the national and state service for the ABC, and these have been on the air under the callsigns 2BL and 2FC. 

A few years ago, the historic callsign 2FC was relinquished and the national programming for the Sydney area is now on the air under the generic callsign 2RN.  Two other mediumwave callsigns have been in use at Liverpool: 2JJ, which is now identified as Triple J on FM, and 2PB, which carries parliamentary broadcasts and news relays.

The new shortwave unit was implemented for coverage of coastal areas north and south of Sydney where mediumwave coverage was poor at the time.  Initially, two channels were in use and these were scheduled as follows:  VLI2, 6090  morning and evening, and VLI3, 9500, daytime                     

June 1 1951
The numeric designators were changed and VLI2 became VLI6 and VLI3 became VLI9.  Two years later again, the 9 MHz channel was dropped and the transmitter was on the air full time on just one channel, 6090.

Closure

October 7 1983
Quite suddenly and unexpectedly, at 1402 UTC on this day, the VLI transmitter malfunctioned and left the air abruptly. The official cause was stated to be the failure of the main transmitting tube. 

The small transmitter was soon afterwards removed from its location against one of the big 50 kW mediumwave transmitters, and all of the wooden poles, all painted white, that carried the feeder line to the rhombic antenna system were also removed.

During its 35 year history, station VLI carried a composite relay from both 2BL and 2FC, and its signal was heard quite reliably well beyond the coastal areas.  Many QSL cards were issued to confirm the reception of VLI, and they were always the regular ABC QSL cards that were in use at the time.   

Just as a matter of interest, the callsign VLI was in use back in the year 1919 for the New Zealand ship "Aorangi."  Then in January 1943, the VLQ transmitter at Pennant Hills that was on the air with the programming of "Australia Calling" was re-designated as VLI. 

Two years later, Radio Australia dropped the usage of the station at Pennant Hills, and the callsign VLI was deleted.  However, three years later again the call was taken up for the 2 kW, transmitter located at Liverpool.