China MIIT Consults on Aviation Navigation EMC Standard
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China MIIT Opens Consultation on a New Aviation Radio Navigation Electromagnetic Environment Standard (GB 6364)
China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) has opened a public consultation on a draft revision of GB 6364, Electromagnetic Environment Requirements for Aeronautical Radio Navigation Stations. As a mandatory national standard (强制性国家标准), GB 6364 carries the force of law once finalized, and this revision reshapes the interference-protection framework that governs how radio transmitters, industrial equipment, and supporting infrastructure may operate in the vicinity of civil aviation navigation aids across China.
Regulatory Background: MIIT Revisits a Long-Standing Standard
GB 6364 is not new. First issued in 1986 and last revised in 2013, the standard defines the electromagnetic conditions that must be maintained around aviation radio navigation stations so that navigation signals remain reliable and aviation safety is preserved. The current draft is the standard's second full revision, prepared by MIIT's Department of Science and Technology under the mandatory standard revision plan assigned by China's national standardization authority.
The draft was developed to reflect changes in navigation technology since 2013 most notably the introduction of satellite based augmentation infrastructure and to remove obsolete provisions tied to legacy systems that are no longer in service.
The consultation invites comments from industry, equipment suppliers, operators, and other stakeholders before the standard is finalized and published with a future effective date.
What the Draft GB 6364 Standard Covers (Technical Scope)
Navigation systems and frequency bands in scope
The draft applies to all aviation radio navigation stations operating in China and sets electromagnetic environment requirements — protection ratios, protected field-strength levels, site-protection zones, and minimum separation distances from interference sources — for each of the following:
Navigation system | Operating frequency band |
Non-Directional Beacon (NDB) | 190 kHz – 1606.5 kHz |
Localizer (ILS) | 108.1 – 111.95 MHz |
Glide slope (ILS) | 328.6 – 335.4 MHz |
Marker beacon | 75 MHz |
VHF Omnidirectional Range (VOR) | 108 – 117.975 MHz |
Distance Measuring Equipment (DME) | 962 – 1213 MHz |
TACAN | 962 – 1213 MHz |
Precision Approach Radar (PAR) | 9370 MHz ± 30 MHz |
Ground-Based Augmentation System (GBAS) ground station — VHF Data Broadcast (VDB) | 108 – 117.975 MHz |
Key changes from the 2013 edition
The most significant technical changes in the draft are:
New GBAS chapter. A complete set of electromagnetic environment requirements has been added for Ground-Based Augmentation System (GBAS) ground stations, including detailed reference-receiver and VHF Data Broadcast (VDB) antenna protection zones.
New frequency-use rules chapter, requiring stations to operate within the assigned bands and in line with the Regulations on Radio Frequency Allocation of the People's Republic of China.
New definitions and abbreviations added for landing threshold point, runway intercept point, glide path intercept point, GBAS, and VDB.
Removal of obsolete systems — provisions for VHF beacons, azimuth and elevation stations, and decimeter-wave navigation aids carried over from the 2013 version have been deleted.
Revised siting and configuration requirements, including the NDB frequency band range, offset-localizer configuration, glide-slope site requirements, and Doppler VOR site requirements.
Updated appendices, including a revised method for calculating interference allowances and protection distances for industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) equipment, and a new appendix on glide-slope Fresnel-zone calculation.
Protection ratios and interference limits relevant to equipment
A core function of GB 6364 is to fix the protection ratio (the minimum ratio of wanted signal to interfering signal, in dB) that each navigation service must enjoy against external emitters — and to translate those ratios into enforceable protection distances. The draft specifies, among others:
NDB: 9 dB against ISM equipment; 15 dB against other active interference.
Localizer / VOR / glide slope / GBAS: 14 dB against ISM equipment; 17 dB against FM broadcast; 20 dB against other active interference.
Marker beacon: 23 dB against active interference.
DME / TACAN: 8 dB against active interference.
Appendix A sets the permitted ISM interference field strength measured 30 m from the ISM equipment user boundary — 85 dB(μV/m) in the 0.15–1.75 MHz NDB band and 40 dB(μV/m) in the 108–400 MHz band — together with a formula for calculating the required protection distance where those values are exceeded.
What This Means for Manufacturers
GB 6364 is an electromagnetic-environment and coexistence standard, not a product type-approval standard. It does not, by itself, change the type-approval or radio-equipment approval procedures that manufacturers and importers follow to place products on the Chinese market. Its impact is felt through deployment, siting, and interference-control obligations that intersect with several product categories:
ISM equipment suppliers are directly affected. The draft fixes the interference field strength that industrial, scientific, and medical equipment may produce near aviation navigation bands and the protection distances that follow. Equipment whose emissions exceed the Appendix A allowances will face siting restrictions near airports and navigation aids.
Wireless and RF equipment vendors with products operating in or adjacent to the listed bands (e.g., the 108–118 MHz, 328–335 MHz, and 960–1215 MHz ranges, or wideband devices with emissions near them) should review the protection ratios, since these inform coexistence assessments and may be cited in spectrum-management or siting decisions.
Telecom and infrastructure operators deploying base stations, antennas, towers, or power lines near airports must account for the protection zones and minimum separation distances, which constrain where equipment and supporting structures may be installed.
GBAS and aviation-systems integrators gain, for the first time, a defined national electromagnetic-environment framework for GBAS ground stations, including precise reference-receiver and VDB antenna protection zones.
I
n short, the standard shapes where and under what conditions emitting equipment can be deployed rather than whether a given device can be certified. Manufacturers selling into airport, aeronautical, or near-aerodrome environments should factor these requirements into product positioning and customer guidance.
Compliance & Certification Impact Summary
Dimension | Impact under draft GB 6364 |
Standard type | Mandatory national standard (强制性国家标准); legally binding once finalized |
Standard number | GB 6364 (revision of GB 6364-2013; second revision since 1986) |
Primary effect | Electromagnetic environment, interference-protection, and siting requirements for aviation navigation stations |
Effect on product type-approval | No direct change to radio-equipment type-approval procedures |
Indirect equipment impact | ISM equipment emission allowances and protection distances; coexistence reference for RF devices near navigation bands |
Most affected stakeholders | ISM equipment makers, near-airport telecom/infrastructure operators, GBAS/aviation integrators, RF vendors in adjacent bands |
New scope added | GBAS ground-station electromagnetic environment requirements; frequency-use rules |
Scope removed | Legacy VHF beacon, azimuth/elevation, and decimeter-wave navigation provisions |
Action required now | Review draft against product/deployment portfolio; submit comments before the deadline |
Consultation Timeline and Required Actions
April 10, 2026 — Notice published. MIIT's Department of Science and Technology issued the public-consultation notice for the draft GB 6364 standard.
April 13, 2026 — Comment period opens. The formal consultation window begins.
Now through June 11, 2026 — Review and prepare comments. Obtain the draft standard and drafting explanation (links above), and assess the protection ratios, protection distances, and siting/zone requirements against your product range and deployment footprint in China.
Before June 11, 2026 — Submit feedback. Complete the official Mandatory National Standard Feedback Form (Attachment 3) and email it to kjbz@miit.gov.cn, using the prescribed subject line referencing the GB 6364 draft consultation. Telephone contacts for queries: 010-64102958 and 010-68205261.
June 11, 2026 — Comment period closes.
Post-consultation — Monitor for finalization. Track publication of the final standard and its effective date, and update internal siting, EMC, and coexistence guidance accordingly. Anticipate that the GBAS provisions and revised ISM interference limits will be the most likely areas of practical change.
Why China's Aviation Radio Navigation Electromagnetic Environment Standard Matters
A revision to a mandatory national standard is rarely a routine update. Because GB 6364 will be binding once finalized, its protection ratios and protection distances become the legal yardstick for resolving interference disputes and approving the siting of emitting equipment around China's airports and navigation infrastructure. For an aviation system that continues to grow in both traffic and complexity, modernizing this framework, particularly the addition of GBAS provisions for satellite-augmented precision approach, signals where China's navigation infrastructure is heading.
For manufacturers, importers, and compliance professionals, the consultation is a rare opportunity to influence requirements before they harden into binding obligations. Companies whose equipment could affect, or be constrained by, the aeronautical navigation environment should treat the June 11 deadline as a working milestone, not a formality.
Source Verification Note
The official MIIT notice was published on 10 April 2026, but the formal comment window (公示时间) stated in the notice runs from 13 April 2026 to 11 June 2026. References to the consultation "opening on April 10" reflect the notice publication date; the binding comment period dates are 13 April – 11 June 2026.
