ATC & AN/ART-13, JAN T-47/ART-13 TRANSMITTER
Copyright 2013 CCA

Probably – No, most certainly! – this is the ubiquitous Collins World War II transmitter. When you think of the Collins Radio Company during the WW II period, you naturally think of this family of transmitters – and rightfully so. Derived from the original commercial aircraft line of Collins Autotune transmitters of the 17D prewar family, this ruggedized and beautifully designed 100 watt HF transmitter was, and still is, the pride of Collins Radio. It flew in many aircraft ranging from heavy bombers down to multi seat fighter bombers and eventually into some of the larger single engine/single seat fighters like the P-47 and the P-38 Lightning. It had a reputation for reliability and ease of use that was second to none in its category of radio. This transmitter flew throughout WW II and well beyond the war even out into the late 50s and even 60s and was used by many Air Force, Navy and civilian aircraft. The reliability of these transmitters was no accident. Not only were they the product of the obviously quality oriented design philosophy of the employees indoctrinated by Arthur Collins, but they were thoroughly evaluated and tested for reliability under worst case conditions.
Here below we see Ted Hunter, Chief Engineer in 1942, watching over the humidity chamber testing of an early version of this transmitter. It is interesting to note that Gene Senti, one day to be the Group Head of HF & Amateur Radio Com at Collins Radio, was one of the final test engineers on the ART-13/ATC project early in the war.
Ted Hunter, Chief Engineer & Father of the PTO Oversees Environmental Testing of the early ATC Project Lead engineer Frank Davis and ME Roy Olsen successfully developed the ART-13 in spite of confusing Navy specifications. 90,000 of these transmitters, of basically four different configurations, were manufactured.

AM/MCW or CW Operation 100 Watt AM Capability 2.0 to 18.1 Mhz Reduced Pout (50%) above 25,000 ft for arc reduction 10 Channel Autotune plus one LF and Manual Channel Typical Input Power (658-896 Watts) Depending on Configuration and Pout Audio Input Required (Dynamic 16 mV or Carbon Mic) Selectable Audio Response: 300 Hz to 4000 Hz +/- 3 db w/ < 15% distortion Tuning Time < 25 Seconds at or above 28 Vdc
For more information on maintaining and using the ART-13 family of transmitters in today’s environment, see the bottom of this page for related links and some great video. Recently the CCA was fortunate to collaborate with the Rockwell Museum as we shot a number of video clips of an ART-13 maintenance expert who learned his trade under the pressure of the Berlin Airlift.


837 Oscillator (PTO) 1625 (2 ea) Multipliers 813 Power Amplifier 811 P-P Modulators (2 ea) 6V6 (2) & 12SJ7 Audio & Side tone 12SL7 (2) & 12SA7 MCW/200 kHz Freq. Calibration Indicator (Osc) 1625 LFO Oscillator (If installed)
Early ATC without the O-16 LF Module Common Accessories:DY-11 & DY-12 Early Dynamotors DY-17A Later and More Common Dynamotor LF Module 200-600 kHz (O-17) LF Module 200-1500 kHz (O-16) LF/MF/HF Crystal Control Module (Applicable B Model Only) Control Head (C-87, Early or C-740, Zeus Mount) Antenna Couplers (CU-25, CU-26 and CU-32) – See Manual Antenna Shunt Capacitor Assembly (CU-24)
The TCZ is a ground or ship based version of the ATC or ART-13 which is basically a Standard ART-13 mounted on a very robust shore (ship) based 115 Vac Power Supply.



Finally, don’t miss your opportunity to work the real B29 operation position on Fifi. Fifi’s operation centers around her airshow schedule. You can follow this opportunity by watching the Fifi link on our website here and by watching the news headlines. Whenever possible we give advanced warning when Fifi is going to be on the air.
– – – – – – – – CCA – – – – – – – Note: The images and text used in these pages are copyright 2013 © protected, are restored and written by the Collins Collectors Association or its representatives, and may not be used in any other commercial or website applications. They may be downloaded and used privately – not for publication or internet use.
- CCA COLLINS HISTORICAL ARCHIVES
- The Pre War Years
- The War Years
- ART 13 - Description and Disassembly
- ART 13 AutoTune Adjustment Part 1
- ART 13 AutoTune Adjustment Part 2
- ART 13 AutoTune Function
- ART 13 Introduction and History
- ART 13 Service Tips
- ATC & AN/ART-13, JAN T-47/ART-13 TRANSMITTER
- Post War Broadcast / Commercial
- The Black Boxes
- The Grey Boxes
- The “S” Word or Solid State