This document specifies the air interface, including the cognitive radio medium access control layer (MAC) and physical layer (PHY), of point-to-multipoint and backhaul wireless regional area networks (WRANs) comprised of a professional fixed base station (BS) with fixed and portable user terminals. The document specifies operation in the bands that allow spectrum sharing where the communications devices may opportunistically operate in the spectrum of the primary service, such as the VHF/UHF TV broadcast bands between 54 MHz to 862 MHz, and the 1300 MHz to 1750 MHz and 2700 MHz to 3700 MHz bands provided the regulatory regime allows it.