AT&T, Verizon reject FAA's 5G deployment delay request, agree for exclusion zones around airports

• Airlines industry officials are saying proposed exclusion zones around the airports are not as large as what has been sought by the FAA

• C-band provides better speeds than low-band and covers much broader areas than millimeter-wave

U.S. telecom giants AT&T Inc and Verizon Communications rejected a request from the Transport Department and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to delay the planned deployment of 5G wireless service over aviation safety concerns but offered to adopt new safeguards temporarily.

Late Friday, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and FAA chief Steve Dickson had asked the companies to delay the commercial deployment for two weeks, raising concerns that 5G will potentially interfere with sensitive aircraft electronics like radio altimeters that could disrupt flights.

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However, in a joint letter on Sunday, AT&T CEO John Stankey and Verizon CEO Hans Vestberg said they would not deploy 5G around airports for six months but declined any broader restriction on using the C-Band spectrum.

The telecom giants said that the Transportation Department’s proposal would be “an irresponsible abdication of the operating control required to deploy world-class and globally competitive communications networks,” mentioning the upgrades are crucial to compete with other countries like China and enable remote working.

What is C-band?

Earlier this year, the two carriers bought the right to use the so-called “C-band” frequencies at about $80 billion from an auction held by the Federal Communications Commission.

Verizon and AT&T are planning to roll out high-band millimeter-wave to offer ultra-fast 5G connectivity in specific areas and much slower 5G over low-band frequencies.

The new C-band, which sits between the two spectrums, provides better speeds than low-band and covers much broader areas than millimeter-wave.

T-Mobile currently uses a mid-band spectrum that isn’t in the C-band.

Dispute around exclusion zones

AT&T and Verizon proposed the exclusion zone around airports, which is also currently in use in France.

The carriers said that there are “modest technical differences in how C-band is being deployed.”

“The laws of physics are the same in the United States and France,” the CEOs wrote. “If U.S. airlines are permitted to operate flights every day in France, then the same operating conditions should allow them to do so in the United States.”

In a statement on Sunday, the FAA said that it was “reviewing the latest letter from the wireless companies on how to mitigate interference from 5G C-band transmissions. U.S. aviation safety standards will guide our next actions.”

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FAA said France uses a 5G spectrum that sits further away from the spectrum used for radio altimeters.

It also mentioned that France uses lower power levels for 5G than those authorized in the United States.

Verizon said it would initially use spectrum in the same range as deployed in France and will use additional spectrum a couple of years later. The carrier added that the more prominent U.S. exclusion zone around U.S. airports is “to make up for the slight difference in power levels between the two nations.”

Telecom industry vs airlines industry

Government and industry officials are saying the exclusion zones proposed by the wireless carriers are not as large as what has been sought by the FAA.

On Friday, the Transport Secretary proposed identifying priority airports “where a buffer zone would permit aviation operations to continue safely while the FAA completes its assessments of the interference potential.”

Airlines for America, a trade group representing American Airlines, FedEx and other carriers, on Thursday asked the FCC to halt deployment around many airports, citing concerns that it will disrupt thousands of flights daily and asked the telecom industry to work with the FAA.

An FCC spokesperson said the agency is “optimistic that by working together, we can both advance the wireless economy and ensure aviation safety.”

Wireless industry group CTIA said 5G is safe, and spectrum is being used in about 40 other countries.

Picture Credit: Toronto Star