Page 33 - AAA JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2022 Online Magazine

announced reallocation and auction initia- The solution to this situation is set in dialogue amongst the stake-
tion of flexible use of the 3.7-3.98 GHz band holders namely, Verizon, AT&T, FCC, FAA, Airlines and travelling
for next generation services, including 5G in public. Although a quick-fix, happy compromise achieved and
March 2020. Airline industry had expressed announced by cellular networks of ‘not launching’ 5G near airports
their apprehensions then and have irrevocably but this is a symptomatic solution to say the least. The way forward
advocated their concerns now, with CEO of 10 to finding a permanent solution to this has to be looked into with
US airlines ringing alarm bells of ‘catastrophic intricate detail. A few possible options, although time-taking and
delays’ at highest levels of government. A report expensive, can be considered…
by the non-profit Radio Technical Commission
for Aeronautics (RTCA) reached a stark conclu- 1. Alter the present radar/radio altimeters RF spectrum.
sion: ‘Results presented in this report reveal a
major risk that 5G telecommunications systems 2. Increase the frequency ‘buffer’ from 200 MHz between 5G &
in the 3.7–3.98 GHz band will cause harmful aircraft avionics allocated operating range.
interference to radar altimeters on all types of
civil aircraft—including commercial transport 3. Train flight deck managers to identify 5G interference and exe-
airplanes; business, regional, and general avi- cute safe manoeuvres like a go-around from approach & landing.
ation airplanes; and both transport and general
aviation helicopters. The results of the study 4. Change radar/radio altimeters with upgraded / ‘newer’ versions
performed clearly indicate that this risk is wide- of avionics packages which are more resilient against 5G interfer-
spread and has the potential for broad impacts ence.
to aviation operations in the United States,
including the possibility of catastrophic failures For the time being, effected US airports are limited to Chicago
leading to multiple fatalities, in the absence of (ORD), Dallas Fort Worth (DFW), Miami (MIA), Newark (EWR),
appropriate mitigations.’ Orlando (MCO), Seattle (SEA). All official updates from FAA to
this developing story is on https://www.faa.gov/5g. But this seems
Coming from Captain ‘Sully’ Sullenberger, from to be tip of the ice-berg, if this situation is left uncatered for, it
‘Miracle on the Hudson’ fame, via his social can snowball into a perilous scenario for the airlines industry &
media tweet, brings this into further perspec- passengers with losses resulting into millions of dollars annually.
tive, “Throughout my career, I have clearly And not to mention, if an unforeseen occurrence like an air crash
understood that in flying, nothing can be left takes place, the already fragile aviation economy can take a turn
to chance. New 5G frequencies are very close for the worse. FAA, already trying to recuperate from the blemish
to and can interfere with the frequencies used of Boeing 737-Max will find itself further into the boondocks. As
by critically important cockpit safety devices, said, ‘Opportunity & Risk come in pairs’ and in this case, it’s better
especially when we need them the most.” to tread the path of sanity aka Risk Management for all players
Risk management in all USHRI’s (Ultra Safe involved.
High-Risk Industries) in general and aviation
in particular dictates first to identify the hazard
and then mitigate it to a level where the residual
risk is at an ALOS (Acceptable Level of Safety)
level. But seemingly, this process is found amiss
in this whole situation on FAA’s side.

“We are frustrated by the FAA’s inability to do
what nearly 40 countries have done, which is
to safely deploy 5G technology without disrupt-
ing aviation services, and we urge it do so in a
timely manner,” an AT&T spokesperson told.
“We are launching our advanced 5G services
everywhere else as planned with the temporary
exception of this limited number of towers.”
While other countries like UK, China & Australia
have had 5G systems in place for some time
now and have not reported any interferences
in airline operations. Mr. Tim Clarke, President
Emirates, negated this by stating that cellu-
lar organizations have ‘doubled the power’ of
5G antennas in US unlike other countries and
have installed them ‘facing vertical instead of
slanting’ angle.

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