Why Is The Aviation Industry Worried About 5G's Impact?

Following a flurry of headlines about the delay to the rollout of high-speed 5G internet in the US, many travellers have concerns about its potential effect on flight safety.

- Lucy Thackray

In early January, US mobile networks Verizon and AT&T agreed to push back their 5G rollouts – originally planned for December – until 19 January over aviation concerns, following a request from US transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).

The two telecommunication companies argued that the airlines had years to upgrade the equipment that might be directly affected, reported The New York Times. The airline industry leaders said in a letter the deployment of new 5G mobile internet technology could lead to the grounding of a number of flights due to interference from the technology.

However, this week top airline executives sent the letter to Buttigieg and other federal offiials, saying in no uncertain terms that if the rollout goes ahead this week as planned, it could be “catastrophic” for the aviation industry. On 18 January both AT&T and Verizon said they would delay activating 5G masts near airports, although others would go ahead as planned. So should we be worried about the dawn of 5G? Here’s everything we know so far.

How could 5G affect flights and planes?

High-speed 5G internet uses what’s called “C-band frequencies”, which are similar to those used by modern aircraft to measure altitude. Airline bosses claim that the arrival of 5G could interfere with these aircraft instruments and cause disruption to flights.