Chris Shank’s Ad Astra per Aspera Broadcasting is acquiring Silent 1070 KFTI Wichita KS from SummitMedia for $5000.

KFTI went silent in mid-January after its tower array was damaged from theft of copper components, compromising the ground system and related infrastructure, while its transmitter experienced substantial equipment failures that required extensive repairs and replacement of multiple components before operation can be restored.

As Astra owns eleven brands in central and western Kansas, but nothing in the Wichita market. Shank said, “The iconic 1070 Signal in Kansas is such historic station. It’s Kansas’s 2nd oldest radio station and turns 103 next month. Between its founder, the controversial Doc Brinkley, being managed at one point in time by a young Paul Harvey, to being owned by Hollywood actors Mary Pickford and Buddy Rogers to eventually being run and co-owned by Mike Oatman, this station has a fascinating history. We’re grateful to the folks at SummitMedia for their willingness to sell us the license so we can work on restoring this station. Good things happen when broadcasters work together for our industry. We have stations across the state of Kansas and 1070’s impressive statewide daytime signal is something we believe we can do some positive things with. If you play good music and offer people Ag info, local news, weather and sports, people listen and advertisers are there to support you. We would not be in growth mode without our committed, energetic staff, passionate listeners and loyal customers. We have some exciting plans for this station and we look forward to sharing more as things come together.”