LZ2KAC / LZ2KBA — History of the Regional Radio Club in Veliko Tarnovo
Organized amateur radio activity in Bulgaria officially began in 1946 with the founding of the Bulgarian Union of Radio Technicians. This later evolved into NSST and subsequently DOSO.
In 1952, the first collective amateur radio stations went on the air across the country. The very first club station outside the capital of Sofia was Veliko Tarnovo’s LZ2KAC (later reissued as LZ2KBA).
In front of the Tarnovo Radio Club (1965): Hristo Tsenev (LZ2AA), Jordan Gaydarov (LZ1UC), and Nikolay Pisarov (LZ2JF – sk)
1. Founding and Early Milestones of LZ2KAC (1951–1952)
On October 25, 1951, the national board held Bulgaria’s first Class „B“ licensing exam. This enabled formal permits for building club amateur stations.
On May 27, 1952, the Tarnovo Radio Club received construction authorization. Kiril Nestorov (LZ2UK – sk) was appointed as the inaugural club station manager.
Kiril Nestorov (LZ2UK – sk) — founder and director of the Tarnovo Radio Club until 1958
Kiril Nestorov established the systematic callsign naming scheme for regional clubs across Bulgaria. Tarnovo received the suffix KAC. He sequentially assigned callsign prefixes to neighboring regional clubs: Gabrovo (LZ2KAD), Elena (LZ2KAE), Gorna Oryahovitsa (LZ2KAF), and others.
On April 11, 1952, ten founding members established the Tarnovo Regional Radio Club. Membership rapidly grew to 41. Members fabricated the transmitter chassis using plans by Boris Konyarov. On August 5, 1952, Kiril Nestorov logged the station’s first contact at 18:30 UTC with Kyiv station UA3KFB.
Left: First homebrew transmitter at LZ2KAC (1952). Right: Operators inside the radio shack (1954)
2. Operational Expansion and Key Activists
In 1953, Boncho Vasilev (LZ2AS – sk) joined the club from Gabrovo. He organized technical training courses and became the chief designer of transmitters for new club stations across the region.
In 1953, Hristo Tsenev (LZ2AA) joined from Svishtov. By 1954, Stoyko Dulev became president of the club council. Under his leadership, the Tarnovo Regional Club earned top national honors from 1955 through 1957.
By late 1955, Kiril Nestorov advanced to Class „A“. Operators Pencho Penchev (LZ2AC – sk), Todor Kolarov, and Mihail Bozgunov (LZ2BK – sk) earned their Class „B“ licenses.
Field operating sessions with portable equipment, instructed by Boncho Vasilev (LZ2AS – sk)
3. Homebrew Engineering and the GU-80 High-Power Amplifier
Between 1955 and 1956, the club’s technical section led by Boncho Vasilev constructed 13 transmitters. These were distributed to newly opened clubs in Dryanovo, Sevlievo, Elena, Tryavna, Svishtov, Pavlikeni, and Alekovo.
In 1957, Nikolay Pisarov (LZ2JF – sk) and Vesselin Zaiakov (LZ3CQ – sk) constructed a 1 kW power amplifier utilizing a GU-80 tube. This high-power setup propelled the station team to multiple national championship victories.
Kiril Drandarov (LZ2ZK) and Bulgaria’s first custom homebrew all-band CW/SSB HF transceiver (1968)
In 1968, club member Kiril Drandarov (LZ2ZK) built Bulgaria’s first custom homebrew all-band CW/SSB HF transceiver. Leadership of the regional club later passed to Ivan Popov (LZ2SA – sk).
Ivan Popov (LZ2SA – sk) — long-serving secretary and manager of regional station LZ2KBA
Over the decades, the station also operated special event callsigns including LZ9CWY (9th World Youth Festival 1968), LZ13CWT, and LZ40KBA.
