Technical Profile: WPAN-DT

TV Technical Profile: WPAN

Channel:: 21
Programming:: 53.1 - BlabTV
53.2 - TCT
53.3 - Antenna TV
Transmitter Location:: [map] [street view] Along US-98 (Gulf Breeze Parkway) in the Gulf Breeze area. North of the highway between Woodlawn Beach Road and Oak Drive. Co-located with FM station WUWF.
Power (ERP):: 620 kW
Height Above Average Terrain (HAAT):: 1,227 feet
Antenna:: Directional
Other Information:: 41 dBu protected contour map, from the FCC. (FCCdata.org link); [FCC]
[FCCdata]
[RabbitEars]; [Wikipedia]; [Screenshot] Midnight hour ID, missing call letters, city of license or anything else informative about the station. (09-07-2013); Owned by B&C Communications, LLC
History:: WPAN came on in 1984; the calls stand for Florida PANhandle. Was a typical independent, with a mix of syndicated re-runs and movies. The station went dark, came back on and then went under again. In its third try, it has managed to stay on the air for a few years, airing a lot of infomercials, large chunks of ValueVision home shopping and simulcasts of BLAB TV in prime time. (BLAB TV is a long form infomercial channel targeting local businesses.) At one time, it operated a translator on channel 69 in Mobile, which under the rules prevailing at that time, required the cable company in Mobile to carry it. That translator was apparently relocated to channel 50 during the digital television transistion period. It appears that, as of at least mid-2008, the station had picked up Jewelry Television, likely when Value Vision was changed over to ShopNBC. When the Mobile translator went off the air, the station lost coverage in that part of the market.; Reports from the Florida coast say that this station has abandoned their analog channel number in the PSIP (they were channel 53) in favor of their actual RF channel number.; In March 2011 it was announced that BLAB TV was to move to Flinn-owned WFBD, whose transmitter site in extreme southeast Escambia County, Alabama. This will allow BLAB to cover a lot more territory. More importantly, it will allow them to get back on cable in the metro Mobile and Baldwin County areas. After BLAB TV left, WPAN spent some time just airing generic infomercials before picking up NBC's Cozi TV and a second subchannel of shopping and infomercials in early 2013.; The station was reported silent as of 30 December 2013, and was up for sale. In October 2014 the license was transferred from Franklin & Hoynacki Communications, LLC, to I Square Media LLC, although it appears that deal was never actually consummated. In April of 2015, the license was transferred to Franklin Media, Inc., which also seems to have never gone through at the FCC. In mid-July 2015 the license was transferred to B&C Communications, LLC, from Franklin & Hoynacki Communications, LLC. As of May 2016 the station remains off the air. It was reported back on the air with mostly infomercials in the winter of 2017.

In late August 2017, the station received a permit to relocate to RF channel 31, from channel 40, as part of the FCC repacking process. Due to an inability to get a higher antenna height from their tower owner, and due to potential interference issues from Mobile's WEIQ, the station was forced to apply for a lower-than-optimal power level from this new, lower antenna height. With this would have come a significant loss of coverage area, which would then allow the station to apply for a new channel at some point in the future of the repacking process. In April 2018 the station received a permit for the repacking effort to relocate to RF channel 21 with improved power and antenna height.

The station has been listed as an affiliate of Antenna TV in 2018, but it was likely never actually on the air with that network's programming.

The station filed a license to cover for their post-repack RF channel 21 permit in October 2020 and was reported on the air that same month with leased time to Blab TV, which had been on the station prior to 2011. The station's PSIP information appeared to be incorrect when it returned to the air. It showed 53-0, which is invalid, when it should be 40.1. It was fixed to 53-1 a few days later.

In April 2021, it was observed that WFBD-DT was being simulcast on the —.2 subchannel, with its TCT religious programming. In July 2021, the station was noted to have added Antenna TV to the —.3 subchannel.