New Station Class Code for ATU Licenses
The FCC has announced a new station class code for primary Airport Terminal Use (ATU) licensees. Licensees that are located within ten miles of an airport as listed in §90.35(c)61 are considered primary. ATU frequencies are available for assignment to entities engaged in furnishing commercial air transportation service (or entities that provide communication services to such entities) to use for ground support operations and servicing and supplying of aircraft.
ATU licensees consist of a number of UHF frequencies between 460.650 and 460.89375 and their corresponding high sides 5 MHz separated. The FCC made changes to the rules regulating these frequencies on January 18, 2005 (WT Docket #02-318). The new rules went into effect on April 25, 2005. Part of these changes include the development of a new station class code to distinguish between primary ATU users and secondary Industrial/Business users operating on ATU frequencies. To discern a primary ATU licensee, the letter “A” will be added to the end of the existing station class code. For example, an existing station class of FB (Fixed base) would become FBA.
It is the licensee’s responsibility to modify their license(s) to reflect this new station class code. Secondary Industrial/business users operating on ATU frequencies do not have to make any modifications. For a limited period of time, the FCC is allowing primary ATU licensees to modify their license by means of submitting a letter to the FCC in Gettysburg. Frequency coordination will not be required and there will be no FCC fee so long as no other modifications are made. The FCC Public Notice gives specific guidelines as to exactly what the modification letter must include. Any requests for modification received that do not meet the requirements will be dismissed or granted in part as decided upon by the FCC. All such requests must be received at the FCC by January 31, 2006.
Contact DCI/LAO for further information and assistance in submitting your ATU modification requests.
