In what it calls an “extremely urgent complaint”
to the FCC, ARRL has targeted the interference potential of a series of
audio/video transmitters used on unmanned aircraft and marketed as
Amateur Radio equipment. In a January 10 letter to the FCC Spectrum
Enforcement Division, ARRL General Counsel Chris Imlay, W3KD, said the
transmitters use frequencies intended for navigational aids, air traffic
control radar, air route surveillance radars, and global positioning
systems.
“This is, in ARRL’s view, a potentially very serious interference
problem, and it is respectfully requested that the products
referenced…be investigated and removed from the marketplace immediately
and that the importers be subjected to normal sanctions,” ARRL’s letter
said. Some of the transmitters operate on frequencies between 1,010 and
1,280 MHz. “These video transmitters are being marketed ostensibly as
Amateur Radio equipment,” the League said, “but of the listed
frequencies on which the devices operate, only one, 1280 MHz, would be
within the Amateur Radio allocation at 1240-1300 MHz.” Even then, ARRL
said, operation there would conflict with a channel used for radio
location.
ARRL said the use of 1,040 and 1,080 MHz, which would directly
conflict with air traffic control transponder frequencies, represented
the greatest threat to the safety of flight. The use of 1,010 MHz,
employed for aeronautical guidance, could also be problematic.
ARRL cited the Lawmate transmitter and companion 6 W amplifier as
examples of problematic devices being marketed in the US. Each costs
less than $100 via the Internet. The device carries no FCC
identification number.
“The target market for these devices is the drone hobbyist, not
licensed radio amateurs. The device, due to the channel configuration,
has no valid Amateur Radio application,” ARRL told the FCC. “While these
transmitters are marked as appropriate for amateur use, they cannot be
used legally for Amateur Radio communications.” In the hands of
unlicensed individuals, the transmitters could also cause interference
to Amateur Radio communication in the 1.2 GHz band, ARRL contended.
The League said it’s obvious that the devices at issue lack proper
FCC equipment authorization under FCC Part 15 rules, which require such
low-power intentional radiators to be certified.
“Of most concern is the capability of the devices to cripple the
operation of the [air traffic control] secondary target/transponder
systems,” ARRL said. “These illegal transmitters represent a significant
hazard to public safety in general and the safety of flight
specifically.”
The surge in sales of drones has been dramatic. The FAA has predicted
that combined commercial and hobby sales will increase from 2.5 million
in 2016 to 7 million by 2020.
In Exhibit A of the January 10 letter, “Illegal Drones Threaten
Public Safety,” the League noted that some of the drones and associated
equipment it has come across “are blatantly illegal at multiple levels,”
with some drone TV transmitters described as “particularly alarming.”
“Rated at six times over the legal power limit, and on critical air navigation transponder frequencies,
these devices represent a real and dangerous threat to the safety of
flight, especially when operated from a drone platform that can be
hundreds of feet in the air,” the exhibit narrative asserted.
The Federal Aviation Administration and SkyPan International in Chicago have 
