Coming Soon in an Aircraft Cabin - "Switch off your portable electronic devices equipped with 5G" , FAA renews it's air safety concerns !

In the February 2020 , in the Report and Order that approved the use of the C-band for 5G services , the  FCC was very much convinced that , Aviation industry needed to do more, 

“well-designed [radio altimeter] equipment should not ordinarily receive any significant interference (let alone harmful interference) given these circumstances.”

• Federal Communications Commission had auctioned the C-band spectrum between 3.7-3.98 GHz , and it was a matter of billions of dollars.
• Verizon spent over $45 billion and  AT&T spent around $23 billion, as they see mid-band frequencies are key for 5G coverage and capacity.
• Degradation to the capabilities of Aircraft safety systems and other equipment that depend on radio altimeters, particularly during low-altitude operations.

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Renews Concern !

On Tuesday , the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said, it had issued a special information bulletin alerting manufacturers, operators and pilots that action may be needed to address potential interference with sensitive aircraft electronics caused by the use of 5G telecommunications technology.

The FAA has been in discussion with the Federal Communications Commission about its air safety concerns over the plan to begin using some additional spectrum for 5G wireless networks starting Dec. 5.

The FAA said on Tuesday operators “should be prepared for the possibility that interference from 5G transmitters and other technology could cause certain safety equipment to malfunction, requiring them to take mitigating action that could affect flight operations.”

The bulletin said “there have not yet been proven reports of harmful interference due to wireless broadband operations internationally.”

It also recommends pilots remind passengers that all portable electronic devices equipped with 5G be should be turned off or switched to airplane mode during flight.

The FAA warned of the potential of the “degradation to the capabilities of safety systems and other equipment that depend on radio altimeters, particularly during low-altitude operations.”

The FAA said equipment manufacturers should also continue their testing to determine the susceptibility of specific radio altimeters to 5G interference and should explore design changes that could mitigate the effects of interference.

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The aviation industry has voiced alarm about the plan to use C-Band spectrum for more than a year. Network carriers are expected to begin using the spectrum starting Dec. 5 starting in 46 markets.

Letter of  FAA Deputy Administrator Bradley Mims says, the agency shares “the deep concern about the potential impact to aviation safety resulting from interference to radar altimeter performance from 5G network operations in the C band.”

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) said Tuesday it is “committed to continuing to work with its federal partners to simultaneously preserve air safety and advance the deployment of new technologies.”

The aerospace and aviation group met with the FCC in August, warning that without changes “major disruptions to use of the National Airspace System can be expected from the rollout of 5G” and added the FAA will be forced to “drastically reduce aviation operational capacity.”

The Pentagon is in belief that, focus should be on preventing interference to aviation instruments rather than trying to stop the FCC  from auctioning C-band spectrum used for 5G communication.

Earlier in the year , a July white paper from  industry group 5G Americas suggested , studies submitted by the aviation industry have “significant shortcomings” and are overly conservative when it comes to real-world conditions.

Wireless trade group CTIA said on Friday 5G networks can safely use C-band spectrum “without causing harmful interference to aviation equipment,” and cited numerous active 5G networks using this spectrum band in 40 countries.”