WASHINGTON – US airlines are asking the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to delay the scheduled launch of the new 5G wireless service next week near dozens of major airports, claiming it could interfere with the electronic devices of which they the pilots depend.
Airlines for America, a trade group for large US passenger and cargo carriers, said in an emergency filing that the FCC has not adequately considered the damage that 5G service could cause to the industry.
The group wants more time for the FCC and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which regulates airlines, to resolve aviation security issues related to a type of 5G service called C-Band.
AT&T and Verizon Communications previously agreed to a one-month delay on 5G, which provides faster speeds when mobile devices connect to their networks and allows users to connect many devices to the Internet without slowing it down.
BIDEN GOVERNMENT SEND PETITION JUST BEFORE THE END OF THE YEAR
On Friday night, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and FAA Administrator Stephen Dickson wrote to the CEOs of AT&T and Verizon to propose a delay in activating the 5G C-band service near a number undetermined number of “priority airports” as the FAA studies the potential for interference with aircraft operations.
Buttigieg and Dickson said that going ahead with next week’s activation “will result in widespread and unacceptable disruption as planes are diverted to other cities or flights are canceled,” while a delay at certain airports would have minimal short-term impacts. term.
Verizon spokesman Richard Young said: “We received the letter recently, after 6pm on New Years Eve, and we will need some time to review it.”
AT&T spokeswoman Kim Hart Johnson said the company was reviewing the letter.
As Delta awaits more than 300 cancellations, the line of people waiting to get tested for COVID-19 is endless in Florida, where coronavirus infections have increased.
HOW THE 5G NETWORK WOULD IMPACT AIRPORTS
The airline industry trade group has warned of significant damage if the 5G rollout takes place near major airports.
“Aircraft will not be able to rely on radio altimeters for numerous flight procedures and therefore will not be able to land at certain airports,” the group said in a presentation Thursday. Radio altimeters measure the height of airplanes above the ground.
A4A, as the group is called, said its 11 member airlines face the need to divert or cancel “thousands” of flights, leading to losses in excess of $ 1 billion.
The major airline is affected by the delay in the delivery of several Boeing aircraft after a series of defects.
The group said the new service will affect the three main airports in the New York City area: LaGuardia, Kennedy and Newark, NJ, as well as O’Hare in Chicago, Logan in Boston, Dallas-Fort Worth, Los Angeles International and San Francisco.
OTHER ACTIONS IN PLAN
The trade group’s general counsel threatened to go to court next week if the FAA does not respond to the group’s request for a delay.
The FAA said in early December that it will restrict pilots from using automated landing systems at certain airports after the launch of 5G or fifth-generation wireless service because it could interfere with radio altimeters. The FAA declined to comment on the airline group’s presentation.
CTIA, a trade group representing the wireless communications industry, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Rep. Peter DeFazio, D-Oregon, chairman of the House Transportation Committee, sided with airlines, saying Friday that the aviation and telecommunications industries should work together “to find a safe way to implement 5G technologies … We cannot afford to experiment with aviation security. “
– .
