Agenda for next WRC now includes an amateur allocation around 5 MHz

At 4.20 in the morning of 16 February 2012 the Plenary of WRC12, which had been sitting for 9 hours without a break, passed a Resolution entitled "Possible allocation to the amateur service on a secondary basis at around 5 300 kHz."

The Resolution arose from a proposal submitted by Cuba, and noted that amateur stations are regularly used for emergency communications, and also says that "an allocation of an appropriate amount of spectrum, not necessarily contiguous, to the amateur service at around 5 300 kHz would be adequate to better satisfy its needs associated with use for providing communications in disaster situations and during relief operations".

The effect of the Resolution is to invite studies, including sharing studies, before WRC-15 and to put on the agenda for WRC 15 an item to consider, based on the results of the ITU R studies, the possibility of making an allocation of an appropriate amount of spectrum, not necessarily contiguous, to the amateur service on a secondary basis within the band 5 250-5 450 kHz.

The WIA has had a continuing interest in this part of spectrum for many years, particularly in support of emergency communications. So much so, that the WIA has taken out several land mobile system licences to enable the use of such frequencies.

Accordingly, the WIA is delighted that the issue has become an agenda item for WRC-15.

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