5G frequency in Brazil does not cause us concern, says pilot

Pilot Ronald Van der Put, who commands Emirates Boeing 777 aircraft, said this Tuesday (18) in an interview with CNN, that the 5G frequency in Brazil of 3.7 GHz, unlike the United States, which can reach 4 GHz, does not cause concern for possible interference in aircraft operations.

Emirates said it would suspend flights to nine destinations in the US from January 19, the date scheduled for the rollout of 5G services in the country.

“The whole world is deploying 5G, but the particularity of the frequency band in the United States, associated with the power of the system being used by Verizon and AT&T is the main cause of the problem. In Brazil, Anatel [Agência Nacional de Telecomunicações] and Anac [Agência Nacional de Aviação Civil] has been monitoring, and the frequency bands are different, which is not a cause for concern”, declared Van der Put.

Despite an announcement by AT&T and Verizon that they would delay activating some 5G towers near airports, several airlines still canceled flights. Others said more cancellations are likely unless the FAA issues new formal guidance after the wireless announcements.

“Which causes concern for any pilot who goes with an aircraft that needs to use the radio altimeter to make an automatic landing in conditions of reduced visibility, which is precisely the case in the United States, in winter time, there is blizzard at some airports. This is where we need to use the radio altimeter on these large aircraft to find out how close to the ground we are so that the automatic system can land,” continued the pilot.

Van der Put explains that one problem is failing a system that pilots are trained for and “another thing is interference with the radio altimeter system which can be temporary or vary the type of information it gives to the plane’s automatic system and can take it by surprise.”

(*With information from Reuters)