American telecommunications companies AT&T and Verizon Communications do not want to postpone indefinitely the launch of new 5G services in the C-band spectrum. The two telecom operators are postponing the application for further research on security in response to a request from US Transport Secretary Pete Boutique and FBI boss Steve Dixon of the Air Transport Authority.
Recently, several airlines have asked both the U.S. Department of Transportation and the Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) to delay operating their 5G networks on C-band bandwidth. This is especially true near airports.
Airlines fear that these particular 5G networks will interfere with avionics such as radio-based altimeters. This can lead to many flight delays.
Secretary of State Boutique and FAA chief Dixon have called for AT&T and Verizon Communications to operate these specific 5G networks on the C-band. Can be postponed for a maximum of two weeks. This is for further investigation. In fact, the responsible minister also wants 5G-free buffer zones to be created around airports to guarantee aviation security.
AT&T and Verizon Communications Project
In retaliation, the two telecom companies said, Reuters reported, They want to continue the planned implementation of 5G on the C-band bandwidth on January 5th. However, they want to take new safety measures. For example, they propose to turn off 5G at this frequency near airports for six months. According to telecommunications companies, this is already happening in France, for example, except for technical details, which are easy to apply in the United States.
Verizon initially wants to use only a certain portion of the spectrum for this. At a later stage, when more is known about possible interference, telecommunications operator C-Band plans to use more spectrum for its 5G service.
However, stopping C-band usage for 5G services altogether is not an option for both operators. According to AT&T and Verizon Communications, shutting down 5G in the C-band spectrum could do many harm to the United States. Among other things, the country lags behind other countries like China in the 5G sector.
Both telecom companies consider the abandonment of the C-band for 5G to be a huge financial loss. Last year a lot of money was spent on spectrum at auction on this particular channel. Stopping 5G is a waste of capital.
FAA answer
In its initial response to the telecom operators’ proposal, the FAA indicated that it did not believe in the plan. According to the Air Transport Authority, comparisons with France are not entirely valid under the same conditions. In France, AT&T and Verizon Communications use less signal strength than they would in the United States. Also, the frequencies used in France are far from the airports that both operators want to use in the United States.
Airlines are retaining their previous position and want 5G not to be used around airports. If the Biden administration does not take adequate action today, it will go to court to enforce the ban.
