Defense Secretary Mark Esper
The FCC’s Decision Puts GPS at Risk
Every day, tens of millions of Americans rely on the Global Positioning System. A recent decision by the Federal Communications Commission, however, will degrade the effectiveness and reliability of this critical technology. On April 20, the FCC announced its approval of Ligado Networks’ application to create a cellular network by repurposing a portion of radio spectrum adjacent to that used by GPS. The power and proximity of Ligado’s ground emissions on this spectrum will drown out GPS’s space-based signals.