Air-to-ground channel characterization for OFDM communication in C-Band

Knowledge of the propagation channel is essential for the design and optimization of wireless communication systems. This paper presents the case study of an ongoing data link development for air-to-ground telemetry in C-band, based on Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM). A novel easy-to-use channel sounding technique is applied to identify specific small-scale channel fading effects. With the obtained information, the OFDM system can be parameterized in terms of subcarrier spacing and cyclic prefix. This helps to maximize data throughput and robustness even for worst-case aircraft positions and maneuvers.