§ 25.113   Station construction, launch authority, and operation of spare
satellites.

   (a) Construction permits are not required for earth stations.
   Construction of such stations may commence prior to grant of an earth
   station license at the applicant's own risk, subject to the
   requirements of § 1.1312 and part 17 of this chapter concerning
   environmental processing and construction, marking, and lighting of
   antenna structures.

   (b) Construction permits are not required for Ancillary Terrestrial
   Component (ATC) stations. A party with licenses issued under this part
   for launch and operation of 1.5/1.6 GHz or 1.6/2.4 GHz GHz
   Mobile-Satellite Service space stations and operation of associated ATC
   facilities may commence construction of ATC base stations at its own
   risk after commencing physical construction of the space stations,
   subject to the requirements of § 1.1312 and part 17 of this chapter.
   Such an MSS/ATC licensee may also conduct equipment tests for the
   purpose of making adjustments and measurements necessary to ensure
   compliance with the terms of its ATC license, applicable rules in this
   part, and technical design requirements. Prior to commencing such
   construction and pre-operational testing, an MSS/ATC licensee must
   notify the Commission of the commencement of physical satellite
   construction and the licensee's intention to construct and test ATC
   facilities. This notification must be filed electronically in the
   appropriate file in the International Bureau Filing System database.
   The notification must specify the frequencies the licensee proposes to
   use for pre-operational testing and the name, address, and telephone
   number of a representative for the reporting and mitigation of any
   interference resulting from such testing. MSS/ATC licensees engaging in
   pre-operational testing must comply with § § 5.83, 5.85(c), 5.111, and
   5.117 of this chapter regarding experimental operations. An MSS/ATC
   licensee may not offer ATC service to the public for compensation
   during pre-operational testing.

   (c)-(e) [Reserved]

   (f) Construction permits are not required for U.S.-licensed space
   stations, except for stations that the applicant proposes to operate to
   disseminate program content to be received by the public at large,
   rather than only by subscribers. Construction of a station for which a
   construction permit is not required may commence, at the applicant's
   own risk, prior to grant of a license. Before commencing pre-grant
   construction, however, an applicant must notify the Commission in
   writing that it plans to begin construction at its own risk.

   (g) Except as set forth in paragraph (h) of this section, a launch
   authorization and station license (i.e., operating authority) must be
   applied for and granted before a space station may be launched and
   operated in orbit. Request for launch authorization may be included in
   an application for space station license. However, an application for
   authority to launch and operate an on-ground spare satellite will be
   considered pursuant to the following procedures:

   (1) Applications for launch and operation of an on-ground spare
   NGSO-like satellite will be considered pursuant to the procedures set
   forth in § 25.157, except as set forth in paragraph (g)(3) of this
   section.

   (2) Applications for launch and operation of an on-ground spare
   GSO-like satellite will be considered pursuant to the procedures set
   forth in § 25.158, except as set forth in paragraph (g)(3) of this
   section.

   (3) Neither paragraph (g)(1) nor (g)(2) of this section will apply in
   cases where the space station to be launched is determined to be an
   emergency replacement for a previously authorized space station that
   has been lost as a result of a launch failure or a catastrophic
   in-orbit failure.

   (h) Operators of NGSO satellite systems licensed by the Commission need
   not file separate applications to operate technically identical
   in-orbit spares launched pursuant to a blanket license granted under
   § 25.114(a). However, the licensee must notify the Commission within 30
   days of bringing the in-orbit spare into operation and certify that its
   activation has not increased the number of operating space stations
   above the number previously authorized and that the licensee has
   determined by measurement that the activated spare is operating within
   the terms of the license.

   [ 56 FR 24016 , May 28, 1991, as amended at  61 FR 4366 , Feb. 6, 1996;  61 FR 9951 , Mar. 12, 1996;  61 FR 55582 , Oct. 28, 1996;  62 FR 5927 , Feb.
   10, 1997;  62 FR 64172 , Dec. 4, 1997;  68 FR 51502 , Aug. 27, 2003;  69 FR 47794 , Aug. 6, 2004;  70 FR 32253 , June 2, 2005;  77 FR 3954 , Jan. 26,
   2012;  78 FR 8421 , Feb. 6, 2013;  79 FR 8314 , Feb. 12, 2014;  79 FR 27503 ,
   May 14, 2014]

   Effective Date Note: At  79 FR 27503 , May 14, 2014, in § 25.113, in the
   second sentence in paragraph (b), "1.5/1.6 GHz, 1.6/2.4 GHz, or 2 GHz
   Mobile-Satellite Service" was corrected to read "1.5/1.6 GHz or 1.6/2.4
   GHz GHz Mobile-Satellite Service". This amendment contains information
   collection and recordkeeping requirements and will not become effective
   until approval has been given by the Office of Management and Budget.

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