Sec. 73.1400  Transmission system monitoring and control.

    The licensee of an AM, FM or TV station is responsible for assuring 
that at all times the station operates within tolerances specified by 
applicable technical rules contained in this part and in accordance with 
the terms of the station authorization. Any method of complying with 
applicable tolerances is permissible. The following are typical methods 
of transmission system operation:
    (a) Attended operation. (1) Attended operation consists of ongoing 
supervision of the transmission facilities by a station employee or 
other person designated by the licensee. Such supervision may be 
accomplished by either:
    (i) Direct supervision and control of transmission system parameters 
by a person at the transmitter site; or
    (ii) Remote control of the transmission system by a person at the 
main studio or other location. The remote control system must provide 
sufficient transmission system monitoring and control capability so as 
to ensure compliance with Sec. 73.1350.
    (2) A station may also be monitored and controlled by an automatic 
transmission system (ATS) that is configured to contact a person 
designated by the licensee in the event of a technical malfunction. An 
automatic transmission system consists of monitoring devices, control 
and alarm circuitry, arranged so that they interact automatically to 
operate the station's transmitter and maintain technical parameters 
within licensed values.
    (3) A hybrid system containing some remote control and some ATS 
features is also permissible.
    (4) In the case of remote control or ATS operation, not every 
station parameter need be monitored or controlled if the licensee has 
good reason to believe that its stability is so great that its 
monitoring and control are unnecessary.
    (b) Unattended operation. Unattended operation is either the absence 
of human supervision or the substitution of automated supervision of a 
station's

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transmission system for human supervision. In the former case, equipment 
is employed which is expected to operate within assigned tolerances for 
extended periods of time. The latter consists of the use of a self-
monitoring or ATS-monitored and controlled transmission system that, in 
lieu of contacting a person designated by the licensee, automatically 
takes the station off the air within three hours of any technical 
malfunction which is capable of causing interference.

[ 60 FR 55481 , Nov. 1, 1995]