As mobile operators and aviation industry policies continue, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) have also been forced to intervene in dispute coordination again. For a long time, Verizon and AT&T have always wanted to promote the expansion of C-band mid-frequency 5G services. However, the aviation industry is very worried that the spectrum will affect airborne instruments, thereby posing a threat to aviation safety.
The latest news is that the two wireless operators have agreed to once again postpone the implementation of the 5G IF expansion project by two weeks. At the same time, this also means that they will cancel the celebration that was originally scheduled for Tuesday at 1 p.m. Eastern Time (marking the beginning of the spectrum upgrade activity).
Verizon Wrote:
We have agreed to postpone it for two weeks to ensure that a game-changing, high-quality and reliable 5G network is brought to this country in January.
AT&T Stated:
At the request of Minister Buttigieg, we voluntarily agreed to postpone the deployment of C-band 5G services for another two weeks, during which we will continue to work on fulfilling the six-month protection and mitigation measures.
We are well aware that aviation safety can coexist harmoniously with IF 5G, but further technical evaluations are needed to convince other partners that any potential problems can be resolved.
FAA Deputy Assistant Director of Communications Jeannie Shiffer said in a statement to The Verge: Security is our core mission, and FAA guides all decisions accordingly.
We thank AT&T and Verizon for voluntarily agreeing to postpone deployment and implement corresponding mitigation measures. We hope that all parties can use the extra time and space to reduce the flight interruption related to this 5G deployment.
In addition, the agreement will enable relevant companies to deploy existing mitigation measures similar to those in the European market, and it is expected that approximately 50 airports will be implemented within 6 months. Finally, although the standards and operating environment in the United States are unique, we believe this can greatly reduce interference with aviation operations.