Friday fragments - comms news from around the web for 2 April 2015

A round-up of the week's critical communications and public safety radio news for Thursday, 2 April 2015 (one day earlier than normal this week due to Easter).

Man jailed for making fake radio calls. A US man arrested in April 2014 for making fake emergency calls on frequencies used by fire and ambulance departments has been sentenced to five years in prison, suspended after he serves 30 months, plus three years of probation.

Irish Gadai worried about TETRA health risks. The Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors' vice president, Willie Gleeson, says some of his members are concerned about the health risks of using their new TETRA radios, fearing that they are being irradiated. The association's annual conference has been told that some gardai are winding down their windows before using the radios.

Motorola invests in drone manufacturer. Motorola Solutions has made what it calls a “strategic investment" in CyPhy Works, a developer of advanced unmanned aerial vehicles. CyPhy Works has developed a drone technology and business roadmap that pioneers use of microfilament tether technology that enables long-duration or persistent flight with secure streaming of high-speed data and high-definition video. “Real-time information is a powerful tool for our public safety and commercial customers," said Paul Steinberg, chief technology officer at Motorola Solutions. “A tethered drone collecting situational awareness in large or hard-to-reach locations quickly puts eyes and ears on the scene."

The case of the missing radio tower. When a US man's 27-m radio tower went missing, he reported it to the police. When the police arrived, the man's neighbour wandered over and the mystery was resolved - the neighbour had thought the radio was actually on his property, and decided to remove it. It's now in pieces at the local salvage yard. The neighbour has apologised and offered to compensate the owner for the value of the tower.

Maine's P25 system goes live. The US state of Maine's new US$57.4m, statewide P25 system, MSCommNet, is now live, with provision for up to 2000 users such as police, fire, forestry, prison and marine officers to communicate with each other.

Who do you think you are? Mark Golaszewski, FirstNet's director of applications, has posted a blog entry on the agency's plans for the network's Identity, Credential and Access Management (ICAM) system, which provides users with 'identity proofing' when they need to access the network. The blog has a link to information on the 10 recommended principles to come from last year's ICAM National Strategy Summit.

UK's Ofcom issues priority list. UK regulator Ofcom has released its 2015-16 annual plan, “outlining its strategy and work program for the next financial year". Amongst other things, Ofcom says it is planning to award spectrum for mobile data services in the 2.3 and 3.4 GHz bands and will take steps towards making the 700 MHz band available for future mobile broadband use