Carriers Stress Importance of Flexible-Use Licensing for Drones
Wireless carriers urged the FCC to act on service rules allowing use of the 5030-5091 MHz band by drones but also reminded the commission other spectrum can be used and encouraged flexible-use licensing. Comments were filed last week in docket…
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22-323 (see 2303100028). AT&T urged the FCC to recognize the potential of flexible use bands to address the spectrums of unmanned aircraft systems. “AT&T and other providers are already meeting some of these needs by harnessing flexible use bands without an airborne use prohibition to implement the varied business cases for customers seeking airborne connectivity and to restore and enhance communications for public safety and consumer users during and after natural disasters,” the carrier said: “We have done this under existing Commission service rules while mitigating potential interference risks to cochannel and adjacent channel services.” AT&T questioned whether “airborne-specific service rules” are necessary. T-Mobile supported a band plan and service rules for the 5030-5091 MHz band. The commission should “also clarify that, unless the rules provide otherwise, all flexible-use mobile wireless licenses permit communications between UAS and terrestrial-based devices,” T-Mobile said: “The existing rules are generally sufficient to ensure that adjacent-channel and adjacent-area licensees are protected from harmful interference from UAS operations, using mitigation techniques and conforming to industry-led technical standards identified by the Commission.”