Good call on the WBEN-WPAT-WKY pattern protection issue, Bob1370. The WKBW-KOMA issue is intriguing. Yes, KB was a 1-B, not 2-B. My error, a result of a typo, in part due to an all-too-quick-just-for-kicks scan of the 1977 Broadcasting Yearbook, which lists KB as 1-B and KOMA as a Class 2 (p. C-296).
And here's a curious item. The Channel listings in Section C of both the 1976 (p. C-279) and 1977 (p. C-296) Broadcasting Yearbooks list KOMA, Oklahoma City at 50,000 LS, DA-N 1000; while the State and City directory of stations correctly lists KOMA at 50kw-U, DA-N. Any radio geek knows KOMA was a 50kw flamethrower that the Beach Boys as teens sometimes listened to while driving up and down the Pacific Coast Highway.
There may be as many explanations for the reasons behind WKBW's directional DA-1 status as there were engineers at 1430 Main. ("They wanted to put the power on land, not over the lake," etc.) I'm told the capability to switch from the three tower DA to Non DA on Tower #2 (and with a little work Tower 1 or 3) was designed into the antenna network. There were times when KB powered down to 10 kw DA (and occasionally, Non-DA) to allow maintenance on antenna networks and other systems. (The same fail safes also allowed KB to power up to 50 kw Non-DA if an engineer wanted to "test the system." Midnight to 6 a.m., of course. Not that this ever happened. Heh, heh.)
It may be the only reason that WKBW was/is DA-1 was/is to protect first adjacent WCKY 1530 Cincinnati, 50kw-U, (DA LSS-Sacramento). When KB switched to the 10 kw RCA for maintenance on the 50, usually Monday mornings at 1 a.m., WCKY, in night time directional mode pushing most of the signal eastward, could be heard in areas north of the city and Niagara county.
And here's a curious item. The Channel listings in Section C of both the 1976 (p. C-279) and 1977 (p. C-296) Broadcasting Yearbooks list KOMA, Oklahoma City at 50,000 LS, DA-N 1000; while the State and City directory of stations correctly lists KOMA at 50kw-U, DA-N. Any radio geek knows KOMA was a 50kw flamethrower that the Beach Boys as teens sometimes listened to while driving up and down the Pacific Coast Highway.
There may be as many explanations for the reasons behind WKBW's directional DA-1 status as there were engineers at 1430 Main. ("They wanted to put the power on land, not over the lake," etc.) I'm told the capability to switch from the three tower DA to Non DA on Tower #2 (and with a little work Tower 1 or 3) was designed into the antenna network. There were times when KB powered down to 10 kw DA (and occasionally, Non-DA) to allow maintenance on antenna networks and other systems. (The same fail safes also allowed KB to power up to 50 kw Non-DA if an engineer wanted to "test the system." Midnight to 6 a.m., of course. Not that this ever happened. Heh, heh.)
It may be the only reason that WKBW was/is DA-1 was/is to protect first adjacent WCKY 1530 Cincinnati, 50kw-U, (DA LSS-Sacramento). When KB switched to the 10 kw RCA for maintenance on the 50, usually Monday mornings at 1 a.m., WCKY, in night time directional mode pushing most of the signal eastward, could be heard in areas north of the city and Niagara county.