The Aeronautical Radio Conference concluded its work with the signing of the Final Acts on 29 April 1966, which was one week before the date that had been fixed for the end of this second session of aeronautical radio conferences. Under the direction of the Chair of the Conference, Dr. Arthur L. Lebel, Head of the United States delegation, who was assisted by two vice-chairmen (Mr. Alexander Jarov, head of the USSR delegation and Mr. R. Monnat, head of the Swiss delegation), about 160 delegates from more than 50 Member countries of the ITU drew up a new world Plan for high frequency radio communications for the use of aircraft flying on regional, national, and international civil air routes. The first session had taken place from 27 January to 20 February 1964, when it determined the technical and operating principles which were to serve as a basis for the preparation of the Plan. In the period between the two sessions, the telecommunication Administrations of the Member countries had submitted statistical data on aircraft operation to the Union for analysis.

The new Plan replaced the one which had been drawn up in 1948 and 1949 and would come into force progressively as of 1 July 1967 with its application to be completed by 1 April 1970. In this Plan, radio channels were redistributed to meet the new conditions posed by civil aviation. In addition, the Plan included rules for the use of new transmitting techniques (for example single sideband emission) while the boundaries of the areas to which the frequencies are allotted were brought up to date. Despite the considerable increase in aeronautical traffic since 1949, it had been possible - thanks to technical progress and to the judicious allocation of frequencies - to remain within the limits of the same bands as for the 1949 Plan.

The Conference adopted a certain number of recommendations and resolutions, one of them concerning the protection against harmful interference of the high frequency band allocated exclusively to the aeronautical mobile service. Two resolutions related to the use, as far as practicable, of VHF for the aeronautical service and the broadcasting of meteorological information for aircraft in flight. Another resolution related to the gradual replacement by Administrations of double sideband by single sideband technique. Finally, the conference, taking note of the possibilities offered by space radio communications, recommended that the Administrations, while taking into account the relevant economic and operating factors, should consider the possibility of meeting the requirements of the aeronautical mobile service on the main world air routes by means of space communication techniques.

This summary includes an excerpt from an article that originally appeared in the Telecommunication Journal 33, no. 5 (1966): 183.