After the two week break requested and obtained by the Federal Aviation Administration, the services will be launched in the United States from tomorrow 5G in C band capable of offering even higher performance and transmission speeds. A launch that, according to the leaders of major US airlines, including Delta and United, could lead to “catastrophic disruptions” to the economy and block many Americans abroad.
Let’s reconstruct the facts. AT&T and Verizon, the two largest US mobile operators, had planned to launch theirs 5G services last December 5th, but they had to delay this launch by a month to allow all necessary checks relating to aviation safety and the possible interference it may cause.
Precisely in this sense the FAA had expressed itself at the end of the year, which after having already highlighted problems caused by the high frequencies of 5G in the C band, had again raised concerns about the potential interference that could exist with some sensitive instruments they are equipped with. aircraft, including radio altimeters that assist pilots in low visibility operations.
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AT&T and Verizon initially rejected a subsequent request from regulators to delay the launch for another two weeks, until January 19, but then agreed to do so.
During this time, the FAA has released some updated directives that provide for the revision of the flight manuals of aircraft and helicopters in order to prohibit certain operations that require data generated by these instruments in the presence of 5G signals in the C band. , Furthermore, has planned buffer zones around 50 airports where there are 5G antennas near the runways, including New York, Los Angeles and Chicago.
All this, according to the airlines, would still not be sufficient to prevent service interruptions. The CEOs of eleven airlines, both passenger and cargo, said that from tomorrow a significant number of aircraft could remain on the ground with a consequent “chaos” that would block thousands of American citizens abroad who have to return.
“Unless our major hubs are allowed to fly, the vast majority of the traveling and maritime public will essentially stay ashore indefinitely. The nation’s trade will stop.”
In the past few hours, the airlines have already been considering whether or not to start canceling some flights arriving starting from Wednesday 19 January.
For their part, both AT&T and Verizon have refuted these arguments by stating that the C-band spectrum is already used in several countries, including France, without any kind of aerial interference.
“The laws of physics are the same in both the US and France. If US airlines are allowed to operate daily flights to France, the same operating conditions should allow them to do so in the US.”
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