A move by the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to allow 5G telecommunications systems to use the 3.7-3.98 GHz frequency spectrum presents a “major risk … of harmful interference” with radar altimeters on civil aircraft, according to new research by RTCA.1
The organization, a public-private partnership that advises the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and works to develop consensus on aviation modernization issues, said in a report issued early in October that if 5G telecommunications systems are permitted to use that frequency band, “the risk is widespread and has the potential for broad impacts to aviation operations in the United States, including the possibility of catastrophic failures leading to multiple fatalities, in the absence of appropriate mitigations.”
The FCC’s plan calls for the spectrum to be made available for “flexible use,” including 5G, through an auction to new licensees that is set to begin in Dece…
