New FAA Policy Limits Use of Automatic Landing, RNP at Airports Vulnerable to 5G Interference

Pilots of some repaired- and rotary-wing airplane will be forbidden from utilizing specific kinds of landing treatments such as automated landing and Required Navigation Performance (RNP) at airports where the existence of 5G C-Band stations might trigger disturbance to their radio altimeter– likewise referred to as radar– efficiency, brand-new airworthiness instructions (ADVERTISEMENT) provided by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Tuesday.

The choice to release the 2 ADs comes following numerous months of issue revealed by the FAA and advocacy groups representing every section of the air travel market over the implementation of 5G C-Band networks being presented by AT&T, Verizon, and a number of other cellular and cordless provider. In November, AT&T and Verizon were amongst the cordless suppliers suggesting that they prepared to postpone the launching of their brand-new networks from Dec. 5 to Jan. 5, 2022, to deal with FAA issues revealed by the firm in a Nov. 2 unique airworthiness info publication.

Now, with 5G cordless broadband implementation arranged to start in 46 various U.S. markets next month, the FAA provided a brand-new advertisement describing particular landing and method treatments forbade at particular airports that are still being determined based upon the coming 5G rollout.

” The FAA thinks the growth of 5G and air travel will securely co-exist. Today, we took a crucial action towards that objective by providing 2 airworthiness instructions to supply a structure and to collect more info to prevent prospective impacts on air travel security devices,” the company stated in a Dec. 7 declaration.

Two ADs were released by the company to attend to particular modifications required to the restriction areas of transportation classification fixed-wing airplane/aircraft flight handbooks (AFM), and individually for rotorcraft flight handbooks (RFM). ADVERTISEMENT 2021-23-12 recognized the following operations needing radio altimeters as being forbidden while running in U.S. airspace in the existence of 5G C-band cordless broadband at airports that are still being recognized:

• Instrument Landing System (ILS) Instrument Approach Procedures (IAP) SA CAT I, SA CAT II, CAT II, and CAT III
• Required Navigation Performance (RNP) Procedures with Authorization Required (AR), RNP AR IAP
• Automatic Landing operations
• Manual Flight Control Guidance System operations to landing/head-up screen (HUD) to goal operation
• Use of Enhanced Flight Vision System (EFVS) to goal under 14 CFR 91.176( a)

The firm intends on calling the determined airports in upcoming Notices to Air Missions (NOTAMs). Independently, operations figured out to be forbidden for rotorcraft operators geared up with radio altimeters were determined by advertisement 2021-23-13, and consist of the following:

• Performing techniques that need radio altimeter minimums for rotorcraft overseas operations. Barometric minimums should be utilized for these operations rather.
• Engaging hover auto-pilot modes that need radio altimeter information.
• Engaging Search and Rescue (SAR) auto-pilot modes that need radio altimeter information.
• Performing launches and landings in accordance with any treatment (Category A, Category B, or by Performance Class in the Rotorcraft Flight Manual or Operations Specification) that needs using radio altimeter information.

In the 2 instructions, the FAA states that its seriousness in releasing the regulations is based upon a research study released by the Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics (RTCA) in October 2020 on the possible effects of 5G disturbance with business air travel. Air travel business have actually been alerting the FAA about the threat presented by 5G transmissions happening in the 3.7– 3.98 GHz frequency variety given that a minimum of 2017 per a Nov. 18 letter by air travel business and interest groups to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

The modern-day requirement for business and civil airplane is the frequency-modulated continuous-wave (FMCW) radar altimeter. Based upon the RTCA research study and analyses sent by radio altimeter producers, the FAA eventually identified that “at this time, no details has actually existed that reveals radio altimeters are not prone to disturbance brought on by C-Band emissions allowed in the United States.”

The advertisement likewise acknowledges C-Band cordless broadband network release that has actually currently happened in some other nations where “short-lived technical, regulative, and functional mitigations on C-Band systems have actually been executed while air travel authorities finish their security evaluations.”

FAA authorities identified that the 2 ADs impact 6,834 aircrafts and 1,828 helicopters signed up to run in the U.S. Changes described by the regulations are approximated to cost $85 per aircraft/helicopter. The modifications are needed to take place on or prior to Jan. 4, 2022.