TELECOM COMPANIES AGREE TO EXTEND 5G MITIGATION EFFORTS; IATA APPLAUDS EXTENSION AND URGES MORE ACTION
June 5, 2023
Recently, telecom companies AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, and UScellular agreed to extend voluntary mitigation measures first implemented in January 2022 related to the roll out of 5G C-band services at or around 188 U.S. airports including Los Angeles International (LAX), Washington Dulles International (IAD), San Francisco International (SFO), and John F Kennedy International (JFK). In 2022 the telecom companies voluntarily agreed to lower the power of 5G services at and around certain U.S. airports to allow 5G service roll out to move forward, but the voluntary agreement was set to expire on July 1, 2023. Given the parties new agreements, the mitigation efforts will now be effective until January 1, 2028, meaning even once additional 5G services are implemented at or around more U.S. airports on July 1st, telecom companies will continue to abide by certain voluntary mitigation measures to minimize the operational impact of 5G operations.
The International Air Transport Association (“IATA”) applauded the parties agreement, calling it a needed stop-gap for 5G implementation, but by no means a solution to the problem. IATA noted that the underlying safety and economic issues related to full 5G C-band deployment, such as the requirement that airlines cover the costs of completing altimeter retrofitting just to be able to operate, and concerns that 5G interference with aircraft altimeters could create significant safety issues for aircraft landings and the use of safety systems, still need to be addressed. IATA also called the altimeter retrofits that the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) is requiring airlines to complete by July 1st a “temporary fix” since IATA believes the retrofits will not be sufficiently resilient once full 5G service is deployed and since new 5G tolerant radio altimeter standards are not expected to be approved until the end of 2024 at the earliest. IATA also reiterated that despite many airlines best efforts to complete retrofits on time, supply chain and other issues continue to make it difficult for all airlines to complete retrofitting by the July 1st deadline, which could translate to operational disruptions during the peak of the summer travel season.
If you have any questions, please contact Evelyn Sahr (esahr@eckertseamans.com 202-659-6622) or Drew Derco (dderco@eckertseamans.com 202-659-6665).
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