FCC Seizes Radio Equipment

[Sid Schweiger]

"The pirate was an FM signal, and last I heard aviation communications are done in AM.  So how did the pirate interfere with air traffic?"

One theory:  99.7 + 10.7 (the IF commonly used in FM receivers) = 110.4, square in the middle of the aviation band.  Another theory:  Spurious radiations from a cheap transmitter with likely little or no filtering and poor frequency control.  In any case, even if the interfering signal uses a different modulation type, just the presence of the signal is enough to interfere, and when commercial aviation is involved, the FCC doesn't hesitate to act.

Sid Schweiger
IT Manager, Entercom New England
20 Guest St / 3d Floor
Brighton MA  02135-2040