Airline may be delayed from July 1 due to upcoming 5G deadline

US Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on Friday that some airlines could face delays or cancellations starting July 1 if the last remaining passenger jets do not upgrade their altimeters to deal with 5G interference, according to a report. wall street journal Report. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) says that 5G C-band signals can interfere with radio wave emitters that passenger jets use to measure how far from the ground they are when pilots land in low visibility. trust time.

Although airlines aren’t actually required to get the new equipment until February 2024, passenger jets that haven’t been certified for operation around C-band 5G signals by July 1st are allowed to land in certain low-lying areas. Will not be given. Visibility Conditions.

Most of the US domestic airline fleet is ready, with more than 80 percent of planes having been upgraded, but about 65 percent of international jets flying to the US are still in need of repair. Global airline group International Air Transport Association reported WSJ The carriers would do their best to avoid disruptions, and they were supporting aircraft with the necessary altimeters for flights to the US. Air India says all its aircraft are so equipped.

Broadly speaking, the article states that airlines believe there will be little or no impact. In the US, most airlines say they expect to fully upgrade their fleets by July 1, although both Delta Air Lines and JetBlue will miss that date, with 190 aircraft and 17 aircraft owed, respectively. WSJ Report. The Airlines for America trade association blamed global supply chain issues for the difficulties in meeting the deadline.

Full expansion of the critical band, which strikes a balance between slow-but-ubiquitous low-band 5G and ultrafast-but-easily-suppressed millimeter wave 5G, was initially slated for January 2022, but has seen further delays Gone – first till 5th July 2022 and then till 1st July this year.

For the time being, the only flights that may experience failures are aircraft that have not had 5G-interference-canceling equipment installed and that may be landing in low-visibility conditions. For example, a JetBlue spokesperson told WSJ Low visibility days starting July 1 could have a “limited impact” in Boston.