RKS Liblice 1

RKS Liblice 1 was a long wave radio transmission facility that once stood near the village of Liblice, about 33 km east of Prague, close to Český Brod in the Czech Republic.

What kind of facility was it?

RKS Liblice 1 was built for commercial long wave broadcasting. Its signal was radiated from a T-antenna strung between two insulated lattice-steel towers, each roughly 150 metres tall. Two tall masts carrying a horizontal antenna wire between them was a common design for large long wave transmitters across Central Europe in the 20th century, since it allowed a strong regional signal without requiring extreme transmitter power.

Where exactly did it stand?

The site sat on flat farmland around Liblice, in the Kolín district of the Central Bohemian Region. The clay-rich, moisture-retentive soil of this river-plain landscape conducts radio waves unusually well, which is part of why this stretch of Bohemia attracted broadcasting infrastructure for much of the last century. The closest town with visitor amenities today is Český Brod, roughly a fifteen-minute drive away across open fields to the former transmitter site.

Why were the towers taken down?

Once the station was no longer needed, both towers were brought down in a controlled demolition using explosives on 11 August 2004. Blasting is the usual way to remove tall, free-standing lattice steel structures once they have outlived their purpose and dismantling them piece by piece is no longer worthwhile.

What can visitors see there today?

Nothing of the original facility remains — the land has reverted to agricultural use, with no markers, signage, or visitor infrastructure. The site is mainly of interest to enthusiasts of broadcasting history and industrial architecture who want to trace the footprint of the Czech Republic's older transmission infrastructure. The surrounding fields are private property, so the former location can only be viewed from the public road.

Liblice as a historic broadcasting hub

The village of Liblice and its surroundings are well known in Czech radio history as the location of several separate long wave transmission installations built and replaced across different decades as broadcasting technology evolved. RKS Liblice 1 was one such structure that once stood in this area, though it should not be confused with other, larger transmitters that occupied the same general district at various times — some of which remained standing far longer than the station described here.

Frequently asked questions

Is RKS Liblice 1 the same as the famous Liblice transmitter? No — the name refers to a separate installation with two 150-metre towers that was demolished in 2004. Other, independent transmitting stations have operated in the Liblice area at different points in time.

Can the towers still be seen today? No, both towers were fully demolished in 2004, and the site now shows no visible trace of the former installation.

How do you get to the area? The easiest approach is by car from Český Brod, a roughly fifteen-minute drive along local roads through farmland to the former station site.

Who would find this place interesting? Mainly people interested in broadcasting history and transmission engineering, rather than typical sightseers looking for a conventional attraction.