Will your GPS work when you need it?

Please consider sending an electronic note to the FCC by clicking here. I am very much opposed to anything that interferes with my safety and the safety of others on the water. In an emergency, I would not be able to effectively provide my exact location or the exact location of a vessel in distress without GPS coordinates. I have pasted the information about this project below.


From the Boat US Website: Will your GPS work when you need it? Act Now!


Earlier this year, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) gave conditional approval to a private company, LightSquared, to begin a nationwide broadband service right next to the radio spectrum used for GPS. After concerns from user groups (including BoatU.S.) the FCC required significant testing and a report for potential conflicts with aviation, cellular, navigation, and four other GPS uses before this proposal could move forward. In that June 30th report the navigation sub-team concluded “that all phases of the LightSquared deployment plan will result in widespread harmful interference to GPS signals and service and that mitigation is not possible.”

Points to consider:

Global Positioning System (GPS) technology has become embedded in modern daily life. Users include recreational boaters and commercial mariners, pilots, farmers, surveyors, construction workers, hikers, delivery drivers, dispatchers, lumberjacks, first responders, and emergency vehicles.

LightSquared should only be given approval if it can be proven that there will be no GPS interference.

In 2010 alone, 122 million GPS units were sold. Retrofitting legacy units to accommodate LightSquared’s needs is not feasible.

Even if LightSquared moves to a lower spectrum, lab testing revealed many GPS devices still suffered from harmful interference.

American citizens rely on the FCC to protect the bandwidth as a national resource; compromising GPS compromises American lives.