Airlines have begun planning for possible flight disruptions as U.S. regulators weigh competing proposals for protecting aircraft from a new fifth-generation cellular service slated to go live early next year, industry officials said.
The early-stage planning involves drawing up contingency plans without knowing where flight limits could be needed, as regulators analyze cell-tower and aircraft data, the officials said. It follows a regulatory order earlier this month outlining potential restrictions on landing in bad weather and other low-visibility conditions in up to 46 of the country’s largest metropolitan areas, where the service is scheduled to roll out starting Jan. 5.
While the wireless industry maintains that the planned wireless service poses no risk to aircraft, the Federal Aviation Administration has said it is worried about the cellular signals’ possible effect on cockpit safety systems.
Airline executives are in the middle of that dispute. “If there’s any kind of weather, if there’s high winds, if the visibility isn’t good because of smog, you can’t use that equipment,”
Chief Executive
Scott Kirby
told reporters Dec. 15. “You can’t land at airports—at Chicago O’Hare, at Atlanta, at Detroit—just think about what that means. This cannot be the outcome.”
The Federal Communications Commission auctioned off portions of the 5G-friendly frequencies, also known as C-band, about a year ago. Top auction…