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• Jason Rainbow
Jennifer Gilsenan, deputy chief of the FCC’s Space Bureau, will lead the agency’s satellite regulatory overhaul as bureau chief Jay Schwarz prepares to retire later this month. The leadership transition comes while the FCC is working to advance changes affecting satellite licensing and oversight.
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Jennifer Gilsenan, deputy chief of the FCC’s Space Bureau, will lead the agency’s satellite regulatory overhaul as bureau chief Jay Schwarz prepares to retire later this month. The leadership transition comes while the FCC is working to advance changes affecting satellite licensing and oversight.
Amazon has filed a request with the Federal Communications Commission to operate a direct-to-device network in low Earth orbit, targeting a constellation sized at more than 5,000 satellites. The filing signals Amazon’s entry into the direct-to-device satellite communications race and escalates competitive pressure in LEO broadband.
Boeing, GE Aerospace and other major U.S. aviation manufacturers have formed an industry coalition working with the FAA to accelerate and modernize the aircraft certification process. Industry spokespeople say the effort is focused on streamlining certification timelines and updating how certification work is conducted.
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Amazon’s Project Leo filed with the US Federal Communications Commission to deploy a direct-to-device constellation of up to 5,105 satellites in five orbital shells (510–580 km) to provide voice and data to mobile phones. The plan anticipates construction of Globalstar’s next-generation constellation after Amazon’s planned $11.6B Globalstar purchase closes.
The cluster argues that the U.S. Federal Communications Commission can approve large-scale private space projects that may alter the night sky globally, while international space law lacks effective mechanisms to halt or remedy the resulting impacts.
The FAA will require radio altimeters to meet interference-tolerant standards, aligning the equipment requirements with the FCC Upper C-band auction order adopted July 22, 2026. The move links aviation safety compliance to the spectrum rollout timeline associated with the auction order.
The FAA says a new wireless spectrum auction could create aircraft wireless interference, requiring major U.S. airlines to retrofit by the end of 2030. Carriers would be eligible for up to $2.2 billion in government rebates to offset retrofit costs, per FAA guidance released Friday.
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The FCC voted July 22 to approve another C-band auction next year, requiring satellite operators to clear 160 MHz of upper C-band spectrum, while also adopting sweeping reforms to space and earth-station licensing via a “licensing assembly line.” In parallel, the FAA will require radio altimeter upgrades ahead of expanded C-band wireless services starting in 2030.
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