On February 18, NextNav released the following statement in response to a filing from Bernard Molloy II President of the California Fire Chiefs Association.
The following can be attributed to Ed Mortimer, NextNav’s Vice President of Government Affairs:
NextNav’s mission is to provide first responders with geolocation solutions that improve safety, effectiveness, and outcomes in life-critical situations. Today, organizations, including FirstNet and industry leading software providers, utilize NextNav’s Z-axis technology to deliver accurate vertical location information to men and women in uniform.
We are disappointed that, under new leadership, the California Fire Chiefs Association (CalChiefs) has reversed its prior support of NextNav’s proposal to optimize the lower 900 MHz band to enable 5G-based 3D positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) information, including indoors, a long-held priority of the public safety community. We believe CalChiefs was misinformed by special interest groups. These special interests sponsored the flawed Pericle study, which overstates the possibility of potential 5G impact on unlicensed devices by at least 10,000 times. NextNav requested a meeting with CalChiefs’ leadership to address questions or concerns, but CalChiefs’ leadership declined.
Just last week, the International Association of Fire Fighters, representing more than 360,000 members, called for technologies that could provide X, Y, and Z-axis indoor capabilities. The lack of accurate indoor horizontal and vertical location information for firefighters and 911 callers in multi-story, GPS-challenged environments is one of the highest priorities for firefighter safety.
CalChiefs’ decision to walk away from its previous position, without discussion or technical engagement, leaves firefighters and the public dependent on less reliable location solutions for life-critical operations. Accurate location data is not optional; it is foundational to modern emergency response.
NextNav remains eager to meet with CalChiefs’ leadership to discuss the facts and refocus on our shared responsibility: ensuring the personnel CalChiefs’ represent, and the 911 callers they serve, have access to technologies that can save lives.