Timed to coincide with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Ajit Pai’s declaration of April 2017 as “Infrastructure Month”, executives of the National Association of Tower Erectors were in Washington, D.C. last week for a series of legislative and regulatory meetings. During the productive week, the NATE delegation, consisting of Chairman Jim Tracy, Board of Directors member John Paul Jones, Executive …
NATE spreads its wings with new technology membership category
The National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) announced that it is offering a new Technology membership category. The Association made the announcement at the 2017 International Wireless Communications Expo (IWCE) in Las Vegas, Nev. this week. The NATE Technology membership category is classified for any company whose primary source of revenue is derived from the manufacturing, sales, design and use …
Industry’s first successful flying COW live test is made by AT&T
By Art Pregler It’s a bird, it’s a plane… it’s a Flying COW. Despite its funny name, we expect our Flying COW will be doing serious, potentially life-saving things for our customers. We’ve used drones to inspect cell sites, measure network strength in sports stadiums, and now we’ve built a Flying COW. A Flying COW – which stands for Cell …
NATE releases an updated detailed resource for tower site drone usage
The National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) today released the 2nd Edition of the NATE Unmanned Aerial Systems Operations Around Vertical Communications Infrastructure resource document available to all interested parties at no charge. The newest edition of this valuable safety resource is a by-product of collaboration between the NATE Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) Committee and other prominent representatives from the commercial …
AT&T and NASA collaborate on drone traffic management systems
AT&T and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) are researching traffic management solutions for Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS). The goal is an Unmanned Aircraft System Traffic Management (UTM) solution that supports the safe and highly secure operation of drones in the national airspace. AT&T has been working with NASA and other companies to make UAS flight path monitoring, flight …
Drones helped Verizon’s network to stay afloat following Matthew
Verizon is using drones to help with cell site inspections from the air in North Carolina and South Carolina to survey areas impacted by severe flooding from Hurricane Matthew. The quadcopter used for the inspections is an unmanned aerial system (UAS) operated by Measure UAS Inc., to inspect cell sites in difficult to reach locations and share vital information on any damaged equipment. …
Verizon sets path forward for Airborne LTE Operations
The Internet of Things (IoT) is taking flight at Verizon. The company has announced its strategy to drive innovation and wide-spread adoption for in-flight wireless connectivity through its Airborne LTE Operations (ALO) initiative. Two years in the making, Verizon’s plan includes: The successful completion of technical trials in various locations across the country using a combination of unmanned and manned aircraft …
Military strikes target ISIL communications towers in Iraq
U.S. and coalition military forces continued to attack Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant terrorists in Syria and Iraq yesterday, Combined Joint Task Force Operation Inherent Resolve officials reported today. Fighter aircraft and rocket artillery conducted eight strikes in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of Iraq’s government. Near Baghdad, a strike destroyed an ISIL repeater tower. Near Qayyarah, …
Drones will put tower techs out of a job within five years! Nonsense!
Commentary – If you believe an executive from drone services provider ETAK Systems, 29,000 tower climbers in America should start training for another avocation – immediately. Safety training companies should shutter their doors. Bye, bye Exofit. OSHA, eighty-six any new regulations. And TIRAP, NWSA and NATE, it’s been nice knowing you. In a news article in RCR Wireless News, ETAK Systems …
As AT&T experiments with flying COWs they’re currently inspecting towers with drones
By John Donovan Chief Strategy Officer and Group President – AT&T Technology and Operations Imagine you’re at a concert watching your favorite band, and out of the corner of your eye you notice a tethered drone hovering nearby. But this drone isn’t taking photos or videos of the band. It’s temporarily providing enhanced LTE wireless coverage at the packed venue …
New drone regulations need clarification as the industry scratches its head
The Federal Aviation Administration made it a lot easier today for a lot of wireless infrastructure companies to operate drones for mapping, safety and other purposes by easing restrictions on commercial drone use with its long-awaited Part 107 ruling. However, because the tower infrastructure industry is unique with its structures going as high as 2,000 feet, the regulations need clarification …
Unmanned aerial systems safety resource unveiled by NATE
The National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) announced today the release of a resource document entitled Unmanned Aerial Systems Operations Around Vertical Communications Infrastructure. The safety document, available here, is a by-product of collaboration between the NATE Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) Committee and other prominent representatives from the commercial UAS industry. The resource represents NATE’s efforts to educate the wireless …
Company offering cell, drone and other jammers is fined $35 million
Although it might not be able to collect it, the Federal Communications Commission issued a $34.9 million fine forfeiture order yesterday against C.T.S. Technology, a Chinese electronics manufacturer and online retailer, for marketing and selling signal jamming devices to U.S. consumers. So-called “jammers” are radio frequency transmitters that intentionally block, jam, or interfere with wireless communications, such as cellphone calls, …
Acceptance of drones in wireless work could begin with early broadcast ‘repacking’ efforts
In 2013, when Amazon unveiled its daring drone plan to have unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) provide commercial deliveries, Black & Veatch had already been investigating how drones could assist in reducing the number of times climbers would have to ascend a tower. At an FCC-OSHA workshop in 2014, John Johnson, Black & Veatch Vice President, ESH&S, said, “I know that …
With a House nod, wireless industry will receive its drone directives
The FAA Reauthorization Act of 2016 is one step closer to becoming a reality after being passed by the Senate last week on a vote of 95-3. It now goes to the House of Representatives for consideration. In S.2658, below, key concerns of the wireless industry regarding what FAA regulations apply to their usage of drones are addressed in the …
FAA to consider report on drones typically used by carriers and contractors
The final Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) Aviation Rule-Making Committee (ARC) report was released to the public yesterday and will assist the telecommunications industry if the group’s recommendations on drones are accepted by the FAA. The Senate is seeking to create regulations for larger drones that could do commercial deliveries. The FAA Administrator, DOT Secretary, White House and Congress staffers have been briefed on the …
NATE establishes committee on unmanned aerial systems
The National Association of Tower Erectors (NATE) has announced the formal establishment of an Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) Committee. The newly minted committee will be tasked with monitoring the trends and regulatory environment associated with rapidly evolving UAS technologies and making recommendations to NATE members and the wireless infrastructure community on best practices when it comes to UAS integration. The committee …
Verizon’s network and the nation’s towers to be tested for drone guidance experiment
NASA is developing technology to track commercial and civilian drones via cell coverage with the first tests of an air traffic control system set for this summer. The agency is enlisting help from Verizon which will assist in identifying whether the carrier can keep tabs on UAVs throughout the nation. Although articles about the exclusive story appearing in The Guardian …
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