Verizon, AT&T agree to limit the use of their C-band 5G airwaves near airports

Why is an airplane’s altimeter so important?

The FAA has warned airlines that it will prohibit aircraft from landing at certain airports during bad weather conditions when the altimeter is counted on to provide accurate data. The airlines have written to the FAA, FCC, the Transportation Department, and President Joe Biden. The airlines say that older altimeters won’t work during periods of low visibility, and add that had the carriers turned on their 5G service near airports at midnight tonight as planned, there could have been “catastrophic” flight delays and cancellations.

Verizon and AT&T have had to hold off on the launch of their C-band 5G signals twice with delays taking place in December and the beginning of this month. Joe DePete, head of the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA), says that “The radio altimeters on our aircraft determine not only the height above the ground, in real terms, above the terrain as we come in for a landing or we’re taking off.” He also notes that the altimeters are “tied to many other systems in our aircraft.”

Ted Rappaport, an electrical engineering professor at NYU and director of the research center NYU Wireless, explains why 5G is so important to consumers and wireless providers. “5G is so much faster in terms of data rate, in terms of capability, in terms of radio spectrum,” Rappaport says. “It basically brings a fiber optic cable wirelessly to the pocket of every human, so 5G truly is revolutionary.”

Former FAA Administrator refutes AT&T’s statement

AT&T released a statement on Tuesday that said, “We are frustrated by the FAA’s inability to do what nearly 40 countries have done, which is to safely deploy 5G technology without disrupting aviation services, and we urge it to do so in a timely manner. However, former FAA Administrator Michael Huerta says that in the aforementioned 40 countries where 5G safely co-exists near airports, the 5G towers are either shut off or are running at low power with the transmitters pointed toward the ground.