4m Ham Radio Band for Australia?
/Australia's national amateur radio society the WIA has expressed an interest in getting an allocation at 70.0-70.5 MHz
Earlier this year, the Australian Communications and Media Authority opened consultation on proposed updates to frequency plans for the 70 to 87.5 MHz and 148 to 174 MHz VHF bands.
As the WIA had signified interest in a 70 MHz amateur allocation to the ACMA back in July 2014, and again in recent discussions with the ACMA, the Spectrum Strategy Committee decided that a submission to this consultation was in order, principally to flag the amateur radio community’s interest.
Historically, the 70.0 to 87.5 MHz band has been used by commercial, community, government and defence communications services. The ACMA is proposing to update its Radiocommunications Assignment and Licensing Instruction document, which covers these VHF bands, known as R – A – L – I ~ RALI ~ MS 42.
The WIA is pitching for use of a band between 70 and 70.5 MHz that aligns with allocations across Region 1, which covers Europe, Russia, the Mediterranean, Middle East and Africa, commonly known as the 4m band.
The WIA will be pitching for a 70 MHz allocation, along with a suite of other frequencies, including the 60 metre band that the World Radiocommunications Conference agreed on last year.
WIA - http://www.wia.org.au/
