HISTORY AND USE OF CLANSMAN RADIO

Clansman is the name of a combat net radio system (CNR) used by the British Army from 1976 to 2010.
Clansman was developed by the Signals Research and Development Establishment (SRDE) in the 1960s, to satisfy a General Staff Requirement (GSR) laid down in 1965. Built by Racal, Mullard Equipment Ltd (MEL) and Plessey, Clansman represented a considerable advance over existing radios being offered to the Armed Forces at the time. It replaced the aging Larkspur radio system, and proved to be more flexible, reliable and far lighter. The technological advances achieved in the design of Clansman allowed the introduction of Single SideBand (SSB) operation and NarrowBand Frequency Modulation (NBFM) to forward area combat net radio for the first time.
Clansman was in use by British forces from the late 1970s and saw service in most recent UK military operations. It was replaced in the mid-2000s by the new Bowman communication system.

Nowadays, in the hands of the amateur radio enthusiast, much of this equipment can enjoy a second life.. The PRC-320 and VRC-321 cover many current amateur HF bands from 2MHz up to 30MHz. The PRC-351 and VRC353 also cover various VHF amateur bands from 29MHz (with mod) to 76MHz. The PRC-350 covers the 6m band only and the poor old PRC-349 and PRC-344 dont cover any bands currently, so are good for listening in, but no TX.