Aviation, Aerospace Industries Want Longer C-Band Delay

 By Leslie Stimson, Inside Towers Washington Bureau Chief More voices are now calling for a longer delay of 5G use on C-band. The Aerospace Industries Association is leading a coalition of organizations representing aerospace manufacturers, airlines, pilots, and operators in urging the FCC and FAA to form a joint industry working group to bring the aviation and telecom industries together to find a long-term solution that it says will protect the flying public by ensuring radio altimeters will operate accurately while allowing 5G to roll out.

In a letter to the National Economic Council, the coalition wants the NEC to work with the FCC and FAA. “The goal of this working group would be to reach acceptable mitigations,” they write. “Aviation will not be able to maintain the current level of public safety and economic activity without support from the Biden-Harris administration and the implementation of mitigations by the cellular industry.”
 
The letter comes on the heels of the FAA issuing a bulletin alerting manufacturers, operators, and pilots that action may be needed to address potential interference with radio altimeters caused by 5G systems. Radio altimeters are crucial systems used by every commercial aircraft and helicopter and many general aviation aircraft, notes the coalition. Continue Reading