Aviation Industry Seeks 5G Deadline Extension

Supply chain issues have made it impossible for air carriers to meet retrofitting deadlines, a coalition of stakeholders told Federal officials.

Meg Godlewski

Monday, November 21, 2022 at 11:58 AM ET

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In January, wireless carriers began broadcasting in the 5G C-band to improve network speed. [File photo: Adobe Stock]

Key Takeaways:

The aviation industry faces supply chain challenges preventing them from meeting the December 2022 and July 2023 deadlines to retrofit aircraft against 5G C-band interference.
A coalition of major aviation stakeholders, including Boeing and Airbus, is requesting extensions to these deadlines due to the impossibility of completing the required upgrades on time.
5G signals interfere with crucial radio altimeters, posing safety hazards by compromising height data and other aircraft systems, leading to over 100 documented FAA incidents.
Despite ongoing efforts to develop and install mitigating equipment and implement temporary measures, the interference issue persists, threatening operational disruptions for airlines.

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The end of the year brings the deadline for air carriers to retrofit their fleets to protect them from interference from 5G C-band wireless service. According to a coalition of top aviation stakeholders, however, supply chain challenges have made it impossible for the industry to meet that deadline.

The group of nearly two dozen aviation companies and organizations, which includes Embraer, Boeing, Airbus, and the International Air Transport Association, is asking for an extension of the December 2022 deadline for smaller regional aircraft and July 2023 for large transport aircraft.