The FAA has warned that safety might be jeopardized by the rollout of 5G.
(Photo: AP)
New York The first day for American 5G technology creates chaos at airports. Because the airlines are concerned regarding the radio traffic of their machines, several airlines have canceled a number of flights. International airlines such as Emirates, Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways have also canceled their flights to various US cities. Lufthansa canceled a flight to Miami and swapped machines with others.
The scramble for 5G frequencies in the USA, which has been going on for weeks, has reached a new high. A few days ago, all the CEOs of the American airlines had warned in a letter to the government that the commissioning of the 5G radio masts might have “catastrophic consequences” for the travel industry. They fear that their machines will not be able to land safely because the frequencies for the super-fast 5G mobile communications standard are too close to the radio licenses for certain control devices such as the altimeter.
The focus here is in particular on the Boeing machines 777 and 787. The FAA only warned on Friday that the safety of these machines might be jeopardized by the introduction of 5G.
“Unless our key hubs are cleared to fly, the vast majority of travelers and goods will effectively remain grounded,” the CEOs of American Airlines, Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, Southwest Airlines and others have warned.
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Nevertheless, the new technology for Verizon and AT&T started on Wednesday – albeit with exceptions in the vicinity of the airports, which were only decided at the last moment. That wasn’t enough for the airlines to reschedule.
“The situation is criminal and absolutely irresponsible”
The situation was “criminal and absolutely irresponsible,” said Emirates boss Tim Clark on CNN. He was outraged that he had never experienced anything like this in his career.
The fact that the USA has greater difficulties with a technology that has long since worked without problems for planes in Europe is due to the frequencies: In the USA, mobile phone providers have acquired frequencies in the so-called C-band for around 80 billion dollars, which are closer to those used in aviation. C-band frequencies in the US are up to 3.98 gigahertz (Ghz). The planes use 4.2 to 4.4 Ghz. In Europe, mobile phone providers use a maximum of 3.8 GHz.
In order to prevent problems, the aircraft in the USA would now have to be converted accordingly in order to be able to continue operating in the USA. Although mobile operators in the US initially comply with buffer zones around around 50 airports for six months due to concerns, the FAA issued almost 1,500 safety notices and restrictions on 5G.
More than 90 percent of the new radio masts, which enable significantly faster data transmission, are now going into operation in the USA as planned. You are far enough away from airports.
However, the buffer zones cannot be a permanent solution for mobile operators. Even with only a few kilometers, they cannot reach entire districts with their 5G network in densely populated areas, such as at airports like JFK in New York.
More: “Risk not to be underestimated”: Why 5G can disrupt US air traffic
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