But we are not yet clear.
The agreement to delay the rollout of 5G around airports is only a temporary fix, and it’s unclear whether all parties to the negotiations have a specific timeframe they’re working toward. A significant number of planes have still not been cleared to land in these most dangerous situations. Regional air carriers are crying out that they have been left out of talks and still face long and short term impacts. And, as far as the public knows, a permanent solution to the problem has still not been found.
Here’s everything we know — and don’t know — about the situation.
What’s wrong with the FAA “clearing” some planes but not others?
Radar altimeters are devices that use radio waves to measure how far an aircraft is off the ground, and they are essential for commercial airliners to land in bad weather. At the root of the lingering problem is the fact that the 5G frequencies that Verizon and AT&T have just rolled out, known as C-band, are very close to the frequencies used by radar altimeters, raising concerns about interference.
In a statement Thursday, the FAA said it issued more approvals allowing 78% of the U.S. commercial jetliner fleet to make low-visibility landings at airports near where wireless companies have deployed. 5G. Essentially, regulators said they now consider it safe for aircraft that use any of 13 types of radar altimeters.
Approved models include:
- All Boeing 717, 737, 747, 757, 767, 777, 787, MD-10/-11 jets
- All Airbus A300, A310, A319, A320, A330, A340, A350 and A380 models
- Some Embraer 170 and 190 regional jets
But of course, over 20% of the US commercial aircraft fleet has not been approved. And the FAA warned that it expects “some altimeters will be overly sensitive to 5G interference.”
“To maintain safety, aircraft equipped with these altimeters will be prohibited from making low visibility landings where 5G is deployed as the altimeter may provide inaccurate information,” the agency said.
The agency also warned that buffers that reduce 5G signal strength around some airports are critical to maintaining safe operations.
It is unclear, however, why the FAA and altimeter manufacturers could not have made these assessments sooner.
What’s wrong with regional carriers?
They are still in limbo, according to Faye Malarkey Black, who as president of the Regional Airline Association represents carriers connecting major hubs to dozens of smaller towns across the country.
Regional flights have brands like American Eagle, Delta Connection and United Express, and they are contracted out to companies or subsidiaries like Envoy, ExpressJet, Republic Airways and SkyWest Airlines.
Bombardier jets, which are frequently flown by regional carriers, did not get the green light for their altimeters. And Black said rural airports “will always take a big hit for [their] operation when the time comes. »
How did we get here and who is to blame?
And that’s how we got to where we are now, with temporary buffer zones preventing 5G from rolling out near certain airports – we’re not sure which ones – and a massive scramble to find out exactly how much altimeters will be impacted by this new cellular service.
But the FAA has been adamant that the aviation industry’s concerns are real — and with the industry already reeling from the global pandemic — airlines are desperate to avoid giving people another reason not to. steal.
Emirates Chairman Sir Tim Clark was outspoken about what he sees as the problem, blaming the whole structure of the US system, saying “this is one of the worst situations most delinquent and totally irresponsible” that he has seen in his career in aviation.
He added that the “risks and dangers” should have already been assessed.
How to fix all this?
It’s not clear. Discussions between wireless carriers AT&T and Verizon as well as the airline industry and federal regulators are still ongoing.
We don’t know if or when they will publicly announce a definitive way forward, but decisions will have to be made, especially since 5G “buffer zones” around major air hubs are still only temporary.
The problem? It will probably cost billions of dollars – billions that no company wants to take out of its own pockets.
“There are only three sources of such funds for the aviation industry. The government could pay out of the nearly $82 billion generated from the sale of licenses to use the [5G spectrum at issue]; that would likely require an act of Congress,” Wheeler wrote. “The wireless industry could pay an additional fee on top of the billions already spent on spectrum that the government has said will be ready for use on December 5. . The aviation industry, having experienced the new 5G allowance for some time, could pay to repair the offending altimeters.”
Wheeler, for his part, also attributed much of the blame for this debacle to a lack of leadership and the absence of a national spectrum policy.
And after?
We are still awaiting updates on the negotiations from the FAA, FCC and all other affected parties. It’s unclear if there’s a firm deadline they’re working towards, or how long the “temporary” 5G buffers will remain in place.
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