Boeing and Airbus, the world’s largest commercial aircraft manufacturers, sent a letter to President Joe Biden’s administration requesting a delay in the deployment of 5G service, scheduled for next month.
David Calhoun, president and CEO of Boeing, and Jeffery Knittel, CEO of Airbus Americas, both sent communications to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, stating that the rollout of 5G service, which will begin implementation on January 5, could cause interference that could “affect the ability of aircraft to operate safely.” Accorindg to a report by Pete Muntean from CNN, an analysis by industry firms claims that disruptions could affect “hundreds of thousands of flights each year,” leading to delays, diversions, and cancellations.
The specific problem would be caused by possible interference between the radio altimeter (RA) and the signal from the 5G service provider towers. The RA is a piece of equipment installed on the vast majority of modern commercial aircraft that uses radar waves to analyze the aircraft’s height above the ground and is of critical relevance to two absolutely crucial systems: the ground proximity warning system (GPWS), which alerts the crew if they are on a course to collide with the surface; and the Autoland system, which allows landings in zero-visibility conditions.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which is already investigating the situation, issued a regulation earlier this month prohibiting pilots from using Autoland and certain other systems during a low-altitude flight in areas with 5G coverage. The rule affects about 6,800 U.S.-registered aircraft and “dozens” of manufacturers. Given the danger posed to operational safety and calling the orders “urgent,” the FAA has skipped the usual process requiring a public audience prior to issuance of a rule, proceeding to publish it immediately without first hearing from the public.
The CEOs noted in the letter that they have developed a new proposal that would aim to limit the power of 5G transmissions near airports, asking the Biden administration to work with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to adopt such a plan. The directors say that failure to do so would lead to ” huge repercussions that would come at a time when our industry is still struggling with the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
