A coalition of major aviation and aerospace entities—including the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), Airlines for America (A4A), the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA), and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA)—are renewing calls for the Federal Communications Commission to revoke its 2020 order authorizing Ligado Networks to operate in the L-band, citing the company’s recent pivot to a satellite partnership with AST SpaceMobile ASTS 0.00%↑.
The 2020 FCC decision allowed Ligado to use L-band spectrum adjacent to frequencies critical for GPS, despite strong objections from the Defense Department, federal agencies, and civilian navigation industries. Critics have long warned that Ligado’s operations risk harmful interference with GPS receivers used in commercial aviation, military systems, and critical infrastructure.
The conflict has taken on fresh urgency following Ligado’s filing to modify its license so its L-band payload, dubbed “SkyTerra Next,” can be hosted on AST SpaceMobile’s low-Earth orbit (LEO) satellite constellation for direct-to-device service. Aviation and satellite industry stakeholders contend that this move signals an abandonment of Ligado’s original terrestrial network plans and violates key operational deadlines mandated in the FCC’s 2020 order. Opponents argue the FCC must rescind the original order rather than allow Ligado to transfer its controversial spectrum rights to an orbital D2D architecture.
Meanwhile, Ligado continues to pursue a multibillion-dollar lawsuit against the U.S. government in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, seeking up to $40 billion in compensation. The company alleges that actions by federal agencies effectively blocked its spectrum deployment, constituting an unconstitutional taking of property.
Aviation and navigation coalition leaders maintain that whether on the ground or deployed in low-Earth orbit through AST SpaceMobile, Ligado’s spectrum plans fail to guarantee protection for critical positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) signals.
, Airlines for America (A4A), the Aerospace Industries Association (AIA), and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA)—are renewing calls for the Federal Communications Commission to revoke its 2020 order authorizing Ligado Networks to operate in the L-band, citing the company’s recent pivot to a satellite partnership with AST SpaceMobile ASTS 0.00%↑.){kind=link}