The aerospace industry could face a fight with "voracious" commercial telecoms interests at an international conference to re-allocate radio frequencies, says the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
The World Radio Conference of the International Telecommunications Union, which is being held in Istanbul in May, has the power to re-allocate radio frequencies between users. And as civil aviation does not own its own frequencies it could lose out in the process.
"We must win the battle of radio frequency spectrum during the next four months," says IATA director general Pierre Jeanniot.
Aviation is increasingly relying on communications and navigation satellites for all operations. The further introduction of full Communications Navigation Surveillance/Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM) systems will make the need for radio space even more critical.
But the rapid expansion of the telecommunications industry has created more demand for these bands and other users are trying to take away some of aviation's allocation. Within 10 years, aviation will rely heavily on Global Navigation Satellite Systems (GNSS) for almost all operations, including take-off and landing.
Source: Flight Daily News
