Regulatory Alert: AAAE Asks FAA and FCC To Take Additional Actions to Reduce 5G Operational Impacts
January 18, 2022
AAAE sent a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), requesting that they take additional actions to minimize and provide greater transparency into the operational impacts that deployment of the 5G C-Band network is expected to have on the National Airspace System and many airports in the 46 markets where rollout will occur on January 19. 
In the letter, AAAE asked the administration to take three key steps that would help alleviate some of the operational impacts and ensure airports are better prepared prior to and after the rollout, including:
• Creating narrowly tailored and sufficiently sized “buffer zones“ around runways at all airports located in the 46 markets where the 5G C-Band will be deployed to ensure continued operations in low-visibility situations. 
• Providing substantially more transparency into the scope of operational impacts that are expected to occur at individual airports to enable them to better prepare for and manage disruptions.
• Canceling, or providing substantial justification for, the Notice to Air Missions (NOTAMs) that were issued for airports that are located outside of the 46 markets where Verizon and AT&T have been authorized to deploy the 5G C-Band base stations. 
AAAE has heard members' concerns and raised critical intermediate and long-term issues that the administration needs to address. We continue to work with FAA, lawmakers, and our industry partners to mitigate the operational impacts to the greatest extent possible; ensure long-term solutions are implemented for 5G and aviation to safely co-exist; and help airports prepare for any disruptions that may result after January 19.
What's Next? Yesterday, the airline industry requested that the Biden Administration implement the 5G C-Band network in the 46 markets, except within approximately 2 miles of runways at airports affected by the recently released NOTAMs. This afternoon, Verizon and AT&T agreed to take additional, temporary mitigation measures to prevent major operational impacts, including turning off some 5G C-Band towers near 82 airports where low-visibility operations would be impacted by antenna proximity. Notwithstanding the development, there are still many unanswered questions regarding the effect of these new measures and whether they will prevent significant disruptions from occurring. 
Details surrounding this afternoon's deal between the administration and Verizon and AT&T have not been made public. However, FAA is hosting a briefing for AAAE and other aviation organizations this evening. We will provide further update tonight to ensure you are all informed with the latest information and how the agreement today will or will not impact operations, especially with the 5G C-Band network set to be deployed at midnight.   
AAAE sent a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), requesting that they take additional actions to minimize and provide greater transparency into the operational impacts that deployment of the 5G C-Band network is expected to have on the National Airspace System and many airports in the 46 markets where rollout will occur on January 19. 
In the letter, AAAE asked the administration to take three key steps that would help alleviate some of the operational impacts and ensure airports are better prepared prior to and after the rollout, including:
• Creating narrowly tailored and sufficiently sized “buffer zones“ around runways at all airports located in the 46 markets where the 5G C-Band will be deployed to ensure continued operations in low-visibility situations. 
• Providing substantially more transparency into the scope of operational impacts that are expected to occur at individual airports to enable them to better prepare for and manage disruptions.
• Canceling, or providing substantial justification for, the Notice to Air Missions (NOTAMs) that were issued for airports that are located outside of the 46 markets where Verizon and AT&T have been authorized to deploy the 5G C-Band base stations. 
AAAE has heard members' concerns and raised critical intermediate and long-term issues that the administration needs to address. We continue to work with FAA, lawmakers, and our industry partners to mitigate the operational impacts to the greatest extent possible; ensure long-term solutions are implemented for 5G and aviation to safely co-exist; and help airports prepare for any disruptions that may result after January 19.
What's Next? Yesterday, the airline industry requested that the Biden Administration implement the 5G C-Band network in the 46 markets, except within approximately 2 miles of runways at airports affected by the recently released NOTAMs. This afternoon, Verizon and AT&T agreed to take additional, temporary mitigation measures to prevent major operational impacts, including turning off some 5G C-Band towers near 82 airports where low-visibility operations would be impacted by antenna proximity. Notwithstanding the development, there are still many unanswered questions regarding the effect of these new measures and whether they will prevent significant disruptions from occurring. 
Details surrounding this afternoon's deal between the administration and Verizon and AT&T have not been made public. However, FAA is hosting a briefing for AAAE and other aviation organizations this evening. We will provide further update tonight to ensure you are all informed with the latest information and how the agreement today will or will not impact operations, especially with the 5G C-Band network set to be deployed at midnight.   
