The air travel in the United States may soon face major disruption as the authorities declined any plans for the postponement of a deadline for airlines to refit planes with new sensors to address possible 5G interference.
The airline operators have expressed concerns over the deadline date of July 1, saying that the cut-off date could cause travel disruption as they may be forced to ground planes not fitted with the aforementioned sensors.
Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg said on Tuesday that airlines were told the 1 July deadline would remain in place.
Telecom firms in the United States, including Verizon and AT&T have delayed 5G rollout up to the cut-off date of July 1 to provide airlines with time to retrofit their airplanes with sensors.
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In the United States, the radio frequencies being used for 5G are in part of the spectrum known as C-Band.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and aviation companies have previously raised concerns that C-Band spectrum 5G wireless could interfere with aircraft altimeters. Altimeter refers to the measurement of a plane’s height above the ground.
In a call with airline companies on Tuesday, Buttigieg told them to work aggressively to retrofit their planes before the deadline, according to the Reuters news agency.
Last year, the concerns related to 5G interference led to a number of disruptions in air travel across the United States.
The International Air Transport Association (IATA), a trade group representing more than 100 airlines that fly in and out of the US, has said the decision not to extend the deadline makes summer disruptions more likely.
“Supply chain issues make it unlikely that all aircraft can be upgraded by the 1 July deadline, threatening operational disruptions during the peak northern summer travel season,” the organisation said on Tuesday, adding that the estimated cost to upgrade planes is $638 million.
“Airlines did not create this situation. They are victims of poor government planning and coordination,” Nick Careen from the IATA was quoted as saying by the BBC.
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