US seeks new 5G delay to review interference with planes

US authorities have requested telecom operators AT&T and Verizon to delay for as much as two weeks their already postponed rollout of 5G networks amid uncertainty about interference with important flight security gear.

The two firms mentioned Saturday they’re reviewing the request.

The US rollout of the high-speed cell broadband know-how had been set for December 5, however was delayed to January 5 after aerospace giants Airbus and Boeing raised issues about potential interference with the gadgets planes use to measure altitude.

US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and the top of the Federal Aviation Administration, Steve Dickson, requested for the most recent delay in a letter despatched Friday to AT&T and Verizon, two of the nation’s largest telecom operators.

The US letter requested the businesses to “continue to pause introducing commercial C-Band service”—the frequency range used for 5G—”for an additional short period of no more than two weeks beyond the currently scheduled deployment date of January 5.”

Asked by AFP for remark, Verizon spokesman Rich Young replied, “We’ve received the government’s letter after 6 pm on New Year’s Eve. We’re in the process of reviewing it.”

AT&T additionally mentioned it was reviewing the federal government request.

In the letter, the US officers guarantee the businesses that 5G service will be capable of start “as planned in January with certain exceptions around priority airports.”

The officers say their precedence has been “to protect flight safety, while ensuring that 5G deployment and aviation operations can co-exist.”

Last February, Verizon and AT&T had been approved to start out utilizing 3.7-3.8 GHz frequency bands as of December 5, after acquiring licenses price tens of billions of {dollars}.

But when Airbus and Boeing raised their issues about doable interference with airplanes’ radio altimeters—which may function on the similar frequencies—the launch date was pushed again to January.

The FAA requested additional details about the devices, and it issued directives limiting the usage of altimeters in sure conditions, which sparked airline fears over the potential prices.

When Verizon and AT&T wrote to federal authorities in November to substantiate their intention to start out deploying 5G in January, they mentioned they might take further precautions past these required by US legislation till July 2022 whereas the FAA completes its investigation.

The battle between 5G networks and plane gear led French authorities to suggest switching off cellphones with 5G on planes in February.

France’s civil aviation authority mentioned interference from a sign on a close-by frequency to the radio altimeter might trigger “critical” errors throughout touchdown.

© 2022 AFP