On Monday, US House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman Peter DeFazio urged the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to delay the auction of some key frequency bands (the C-wave auction), which was originally scheduled to begin on Tuesday, according to reports. According to him, this frequency band can endanger the safety of flights. He noted that the Radio Technology Commission for Aeronautics (RTCA) had conducted a six-month review of the 5G network's radio altimeter and safety-critical radio altimeters. The review found that this posed a serious risk of harmful interference to all types of aircraft.
DeFazio urged the FCC to work with the Federal Aviation Administration and aviation industry experts. This is necessary "so that the safety of the hundreds of millions of Americans who travel by air each year is not jeopardized by the FCC's hasty plan."
FCC spokesman Will Wyquist said the committee "has no plans to delay the proposal." According to the FCC, its rules will protect radio altimeters used in aircraft. It further states that there is currently no reason to believe that 5G C-band services will cause harmful interference to the radio altimeter." Band C is a frequency block that provides video and radio programs to 120 million American homes.
The FCC also added; “The altimeter is more than 200 MHz away from the C-band spectrum that will be auctioned during operations. The United States provides more protection than some other countries."
Last month, the Air Transport Association of America raised concerns about the C-band auction. This association represents such major airlines as American Airlines, Delta Air Lines and United Airlines. It also represents major aviation associations such as the Aviation Industry Association and the General Aviation Manufacturers Association.
On Nov. 17, the association said in a letter to Congress that RTCA's analysis showed that “risks of this type are widespread and could seriously affect the US aviation business, including in the absence of appropriate mitigation measures. Under certain circumstances, a catastrophic failure can occur, which will lead to the death of many people."
At this time, there is no information about what the US government will do. However, the FCC has made it clear that it will not delay the auctions. With all that said, it's important to examine RCTA claims. People's lives are more important than using the 5G network.
