5G Delayed Near US Airports after Warning from Airlines
2022-01-19
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1The two largest wireless companies in the United States said Tuesday they would delay the start of high-speed 5G mobile service near some airports.
2The move came after several major airlines in the country warned that deploying 5G service near the airports could be "catastrophic."
3In a letter to federal officials on Monday, the heads of 10 airlines including American, Delta, United, and Southwest said 5G will be more disruptive than they originally thought.
4They wrote that "more than 1,100 flights and 100,000 passengers" could be affected daily with cancellations and delays.
5They said, "the nation's commerce will grind to a halt."
6The airlines asked that 5G could be deployed everywhere in the country except within "3.2 km of airport runways" at some important airports.
7On Tuesday, AT&T, one of the largest wireless providers in the U.S., said it would "temporarily" delay turning on 5G transmitters at some airports.
8The company said it would work with the federal government to settle the dispute.
9The nation's largest wireless company, Verizon, said it will launch its 5G service.
10But the company added, "we have voluntarily decided to limit our 5G network around airports."
11Two weeks ago, the wireless companies had also agreed to reduce the power of 5G transmitters near 50 airports in the U.S. for six months.
12AT&T and Verizon were planning to start their 5G service Wednesday.
13The start of the high-speed service has been delayed two times since early December.
14The new 5G network promises faster internet speeds and larger network capacity.
155G, which stands for fifth-generation, is about 10 times faster than the existing 4G network.
16The 5G network runs on a radio spectrum known as the C band which airline companies say could interfere with the operation of some altimeters.
17An altimeter sends radio waves from an airplane to the ground to measure how far above the ground an airplane is traveling.
18Pilots use it to help with landing planes and identifying dangerous changes in wind speed and direction known as wind shear.
19Verizon and AT&T have argued that 5G has been deployed in about 40 other countries without interference issues.
20CTIA is a U.S. wireless trade group.
21It said in a filing with the Federal Communications Commission,
22"Wireless carriers in nearly 40 countries throughout Europe and Asia now use the C band for 5G,
23with no reported effects on radio altimeters that operate in the same internationally designated 4.2-4.4 GHz band."
24The Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA, oversees airline safety in the U.S.
25The agency said on Sunday it had cleared an estimated 45 percent of the U.S. commercial airplanes to perform low-visibility landings at many airports where 5G will be deployed.
26The airlines, however, noted on Monday that the list did not include many large airports.
27The FAA expects to issue more approvals before Wednesday.
28And the agency added it "continues to work with the aviation industry and wireless companies to try to limit 5G-related flight delays and cancellations."
29In Europe, 5G network operates in a 3.4 to 3.8 GHz range.
30That spectrum is slightly lower than the range set to be deployed in the U.S.
31The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) said on Dec. 17 the issue was specific to U.S. airspace.
32The agency added, "At this stage, no risk of unsafe interference has been identified in Europe."
33In South Korea, the 5G mobile communication range is from 3.42 to 3.7 GHz.
34There has been no report of interference with radio waves since the start of the high-speed network in 2019.
35I'm Jill Robbins.
1The two largest wireless companies in the United States said Tuesday they would delay the start of high-speed 5G mobile service near some airports. 2The move came after several major airlines in the country warned that deploying 5G service near the airports could be "catastrophic." 3In a letter to federal officials on Monday, the heads of 10 airlines including American, Delta, United, and Southwest said 5G will be more disruptive than they originally thought. They wrote that "more than 1,100 flights and 100,000 passengers" could be affected daily with cancellations and delays. They said, "the nation's commerce will grind to a halt." 4The airlines asked that 5G could be deployed everywhere in the country except within "3.2 km of airport runways" at some important airports. 5On Tuesday, AT&T, one of the largest wireless providers in the U.S., said it would "temporarily" delay turning on 5G transmitters at some airports. The company said it would work with the federal government to settle the dispute. 6The nation's largest wireless company, Verizon, said it will launch its 5G service. But the company added, "we have voluntarily decided to limit our 5G network around airports." 7Two weeks ago, the wireless companies had also agreed to reduce the power of 5G transmitters near 50 airports in the U.S. for six months. 8AT&T and Verizon were planning to start their 5G service Wednesday. The start of the high-speed service has been delayed two times since early December. 9Airliners say the C band is too close 10The new 5G network promises faster internet speeds and larger network capacity. 5G, which stands for fifth-generation, is about 10 times faster than the existing 4G network. 11The 5G network runs on a radio spectrum known as the C band which airline companies say could interfere with the operation of some altimeters. An altimeter sends radio waves from an airplane to the ground to measure how far above the ground an airplane is traveling. Pilots use it to help with landing planes and identifying dangerous changes in wind speed and direction known as wind shear. 12Wireless companies say 5G is safe 13Verizon and AT&T have argued that 5G has been deployed in about 40 other countries without interference issues. 14CTIA is a U.S. wireless trade group. It said in a filing with the Federal Communications Commission, "Wireless carriers in nearly 40 countries throughout Europe and Asia now use the C band for 5G, with no reported effects on radio altimeters that operate in the same internationally designated 4.2-4.4 GHz band." 15The Federal Aviation Administration, or FAA, oversees airline safety in the U.S. The agency said on Sunday it had cleared an estimated 45 percent of the U.S. commercial airplanes to perform low-visibility landings at many airports where 5G will be deployed. The airlines, however, noted on Monday that the list did not include many large airports. 16The FAA expects to issue more approvals before Wednesday. And the agency added it "continues to work with the aviation industry and wireless companies to try to limit 5G-related flight delays and cancellations." 17Why is 5G not an issue in other countries? 18In Europe, 5G network operates in a 3.4 to 3.8 GHz range. That spectrum is slightly lower than the range set to be deployed in the U.S. 19The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) said on Dec. 17 the issue was specific to U.S. airspace. The agency added, "At this stage, no risk of unsafe interference has been identified in Europe." 20In South Korea, the 5G mobile communication range is from 3.42 to 3.7 GHz. There has been no report of interference with radio waves since the start of the high-speed network in 2019. 21I'm Jill Robbins. 22Hai Do adapted this story for Learning English based on reporting from Reuters and The Associated Press. 23____________________________________________________ 24catastrophic - adj. related to a terrible disaster 25disruptive - adj. interrupting normal activity 26grind to a halt - phrase, to stop working or moving forward 27capacity - n. the amount of something that can be managed 28spectrum - n. an entire range of radio waves 29designate - v. to officially choose something 30low-visibility - adj. condition with limited ability to see clearly 31aviation - n. the business of flying 32specific - adj. relating to a particular situation