WRKT
 | |
| City | Erie, Pennsylvania |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Erie, Pennsylvania |
| Frequency | 104.9 MHz |
| Branding | Rocket 105 |
| Programming | |
| Format | AR |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | iHeartMedia, Inc. (iHM Licenses, LLC) |
| WFNN, WJET, WRTS, WEBG, WTWF, WXBB | |
| History | |
First air date | June 22, 1989 (at 100.9) |
Former frequencies | 100.9 MHz (1989–2017) |
Call sign meaning | We're RocKeT 105 FM! |
| Technical information | |
| Facility ID | 55063 |
| Class | B1 |
| ERP | 4,500 watts |
| HAAT | 160.5 meters (527 ft) |
| Links | |
| Webcast | Listen live |
| Website | [1] |
WRKT ("Rocket 105", 104.9 FM) is a AR formatted radio station in Erie, Pennsylvania. The station is owned by iHeartMedia. WRKT's studios are located in the Boston Store building in downtown Erie while its transmitter is located near NE Sherman Rd and Miller Rd in Chautauqua County New York just outside of Erie Pennsylvania. It plays both old, new, and next rock songs plus an array of sports. Notable on air personalities past and present include Kris Earl Phillips the original Program Director and architect of the format, Steve Bohen, Paul Spinley, Kevin August, Dave Sharp, Amy St. John, Ronnie "Ron Klinester" Kline, Mark O'Brien, Nat Massing, Mojo McKay, Allan "AC" Carpenter, Woody, with Chris Rodler, and "Static 'Stat' Boy".
Launched on June the 22nd of 1989 at 12:00pm WRKT blast off as "RockRadio! Erie's New Rocket 101 FM!!" at 100.9 MHz, and for 28 years before moving down the dial to 104.9 MHz and rebranding themselves as "Erie's All New Rocket 105 FM!" On October 20th, 2017 at 12:00pm EDT their last song as Rocket 101 was "Free Bird" by Lynyrd Skynyrd before moving frequencies to 104.9. Their first song as Rocket 105 was "For Those About to Rock (We Salute You)" by AC/DC.[1] The 100.9 frequency was to be reallocated to Westfield, New York and sold at auction. Rick Rambaldo, owner of WEHP, won the bid but was late in getting his down payment sent to the FCC, leading to his bid being rejected. The frequency again went up for auction in April 2020 (later delayed to July 2021). Rambaldo held an agreement to restore the oldies format that had previously been on AM 1530 until 2017 had he won the auction. [2] Rambaldo sold WEHP in 2019 but re-entered the 2021 auction, winning the bidding for the 100.9 license.[3]
On March 27, 2019, Connoisseur Media announced that it would transfer WRKT along with its sister stations to iHeartMedia in exchange for WFRE and WFMD in the Frederick, Maryland market from the Aloha Station Trust.[2] The sale closed on May 20, 2019. Since this time, the only remaining local air personalities on the station are Mojo McKay and Allan Carpenter. The remainder of Rocket 105's programming originates from the iHeartMedia Premium Choice lineup.
References[]
- ^ "Rocket 101 Becomes Rocket 105 - Format Change Archive". Format Change Archive. 2017-10-20. Retrieved 2017-10-29.
- ^ "iHeartMedia & Connoisseur Media Swap Frederick & Erie". RadioInsight. 27 March 2019.
External links[]
- WRKT official website
- WRKT in the FCC FM station database
- WRKT on Radio-Locator
- WRKT in Nielsen Audio's FM station database
- Radio stations in Erie, Pennsylvania
- IHeartMedia radio stations