5G - On or Off

10024663900?profile=RESIZE_400xIn the US, 5G services are planned for launch beginning 19 January 2022 using frequencies in a radio spectrum called the C-band.  These frequencies can be close to those used by radar altimeters, an important piece of safety equipment in aircraft.  Because the proposed 5G deployment involves a new combination of power levels, frequencies, proximity to flight operations, and other factors, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will impose restrictions on flight operations using certain types of radar altimeter equipment close to antennas in 5G networks.[1]

On 18 January, major airlines Emirates, JAL, and ANA have all announced they would be canceling some flights to the US as a result of potential 5G interference with radio altimeters onboard aircraft. The cancellations impact flights operated by Boeing 777 aircraft.[2]  As of the writing of this report, AT&T and Verizon Communications are going ahead with major launches of wireless spectrum for their 5G networks on the 19th, minus a few towers near airports around the country, as regulators continue to request more time to study how the frequencies might affect equipment that jets use while landing.[3]  T-Mobile, which also offers 5G, operates on a different band that AT&T and Version.[4] 

The 5G launch was originally planned for 5 December 2021 but this was pushed to January 5 to allow airlines and the FAA more time to address concerns.  Airlines for America petitioned for a further delay and telecommunications carriers have also offered to voluntarily delay 5G deployment by two weeks and restrict their own antenna operations in areas close to key airports where interference could lead to the most problematic disruptions. But 5G is coming and the FAA is working with airlines and manufacturers to assess how radar altimeters will perform in the 5G C-band environment.  As tests prove that some altimeters are safe, the FAA will be able to remove some restrictions on operations of aircraft with those altimeters.  Disruption risk will gradually decrease as more altimeters are tested and either deemed safe, retrofitted or replaced. 

On 7 January of this year, the FAA disclosed that 50 US airports will have 5G buffer zones, including some of the largest hubs in the country.  Then, on 13 January, the FAA issued more than one thousand notices detailing the extent of potential impact of 5G services.  The Airports Council International – North America (ACI-NA), the trade association representing commercial service airports in the US and Canada, has written to the FAA and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) requesting a delay in 5G implementation to avoid widespread disruption across the US air transportation system.  “As a result of the Notices to Air Missions (NOTAMs) the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued last night, more than 100 airports and heliports within 46 of the largest metropolitan areas of the country will have their low visibility approach procedures closed due to potential radio frequency interference between 5G transmissions and radar altimeters,” said ACI-NA President in a 14 January letter to the FAA Administrator and current FCC Chair.  “The airports affected include many of the largest and busiest commercial service airports in the United States, including airports in Boston, New York, Orlando, Dallas Fort Worth, Seattle, San Francisco, and Los Angeles just to name a few.  More alarmingly, multiple Level I and II trauma hospitals will also see their low visibility approach procedures shuttered,” the NOTAM said.  “Despite promises from an eleventh-hour ‘deal’ made between the FAA and telecommunications companies, we still find ourselves facing the loss of this capability at hundreds of US airports without any clear indication when it will be restored.” 

Following the letter, the FAA released its latest notice on 5G and airworthiness.  This time relating to Boeing 787 aircraft only.  In line with the notice, operators of the planes will be required to take additional precautions when landing on wet or snowy runways at airports where 5G C-band service is deployed.  “During the two-week delay in deploying new 5G service, safety experts determined that 5G interference with the aircraft’s radio altimeter could prevent engine and braking systems from transitioning to landing mode, which could prevent an aircraft from stopping on the runway,” the FAA stated.  The Boeing 787 directive alone affects 137 aircraft in the United States and 1,010 worldwide.  Executives at Boeing and Airbus have also warned that the technology could have “an enormous negative impact on the aviation industry.”

Of course, 5G is not specific to the US alone and many other countries have already rolled out the service with no risks to aviation.  In the UK for example, the Civil Aviation Authority said in December that “conversations with other national aviation authorities have established that there have been no confirmed instances where 5G interference has resulted in aircraft system malfunction or unexpected behavior.”

And in Australia, the Civil Aviation Safety Authority has been closely monitoring the issue and stated on 7 January that it has seen no evidence 5G transmissions are currently affecting aircraft in the country.  One reason for this is that Australian 5G transmissions currently do not extend into the part of the spectrum worrying the U.S. aviation industry.  So just because the likes of the UK, Australia, Japan, France and others have not witnessed issues of interference between 5G and airworthiness, does not mean the US will be the same as many factors come into play.

As US House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Chair said: “These other countries have far fewer major airports and much less aviation activity than the US.  To make this comparison without recognizing the critical differences that exist between the US and every other country that has deployed 5G technology is disingenuous, misleading, and displays a glaring disregard for the potential safety measures needed to protect the flying public.”  He added that nearly every other country that has deployed 5G has imposed some level of restrictions on its use to protect against harmful interference with aircraft.  “These include reducing the power levels of 5G transmissions, requiring more extensive exclusion zones at airports, ensuring 5G operates at a farther distance from the aviation frequency band or limiting the directional tilt of certain 5G broadband antennas, among other things. Unfortunately, none of these restrictions are required in the US and the voluntary mitigations that are in place are only temporary,” he explained.

The FAA says that US airspace is “the most complex in the world”, and that deployments of 5G technology in other countries often involve different conditions than those proposed for the US, such as those described by government officials.

Aviation of course is already stretched and suffering under the strains of operating in a pandemic.  With hindsight, would it have been prudent to iron out the 5G concerns much earlier in the day?  The FAA response is that it, the aviation industry, telecommunications companies, and their regulators, have been discussing and weighing these interference concerns for years.  Recent dialogue has helped to establish information sharing between aviation and telecommunications sectors and newly agreed measures to reduce the risk of disruption, but the FAA says these issues are ongoing and will not be resolved overnight.

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[1] https://www.hstoday.us/subject-matter-areas/airport-aviation-security/aviation-concerns-about-5g-remain-unresolved-as-launch-date-nears/

[2] https://simpleflying.com/emirates-jal-ana-us-cuts-5g/

[3] https://www.barrons.com/articles/5g-faa-wireless-airlines-51642536754

[4] https://www.rollcall.com/2022/01/18/airlines-telecoms-struggle-for-compromise-on-eve-of-5g-deadline/

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