FAA Issues Airworthiness Directives to Guard Against 5G Interference

Both prohibit certain operations requiring radio altimeter (RadAlt) data when in the presence of 5G.

Meg Godlewski

Wednesday, December 08, 2021 at 04:16 PM ET

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AT&T and Verizon voluntarily agreed to delay their plans for deployment of 5G until January 2022. Credit: Adobe Stock

Key Takeaways:

The FAA has issued airworthiness directives (ADs) prohibiting certain aircraft operations that rely on radar/radio altimeter data when in the presence of 5G C-Band wireless transmissions.
Radar altimeters, critical for providing accurate altitude above ground, particularly during inclement weather approaches, are deemed unreliable if they experience interference from 5G C-Band operations in the 3.7-3.98 GHz frequency band.
These ADs will require revisions to aircraft flight manuals and the issuance of NOTAMs at specific airports, restricting critical operations such as ILS approaches, RNP procedures, and automatic landings.
The directives are a response to the FCC's authorization of 5G deployment in the C-Band, leading to ongoing efforts between the FAA, FCC, and wireless companies to safely integrate 5G.

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The FAA has released two airworthiness directives (AD) requiring operators of passenger-carrying aircraft to prohibit certain operations requiring radar (or radio) altimeter data when in the presence of 5G wireless transmissions.

When installed, this type of altimeter provides information critical to situational awareness, including the aircraft’s altitude in absolute terms above the ground. This is particularly important during approaches and departures in inclement weather.