Anatel rules out delaying 5G at airports after the US postponed due to concerns about flights

The National Telecommunications Agency (Anatel) stated in a statement to CNN Brasil Business on Tuesday (4), which does not foresee a postponement of the implementation schedule of the 5G in Brazil, after the United States delayed its schedule by two weeks.

AT&T and Verizon, responsible for implementing the new generation of internet in the USA, signed an agreement with regulatory agencies in the country after criticism of Airlines.

The companies claim that the proximity of the 5G infrastructure to airports was hampering the conduct of flights in the country, due to interference between the 5G frequency and that used in flights to communicate with airports. With that, there was the risk of cancellation or mass postponement of flights due to security risks.

In a statement, Anatel said that it “follows the matter with care and caution”, and that “the coexistence between mobile services, such as 5G, and radio altimeters is an issue that has been debated internationally for years.” Radio altimeters are the devices that determine the altitude of an airplane.

According to the agency, the main frequency band for the implementation of 5G in Brazil is 3.5 GHz, which would correspond to the band from 3,300 to 3,700 MHz, lower than the band that will be used in the United States, which goes from 3,700 to 3,980 MHz .

“The equipment used in airplanes (radio altimeters), on the other hand, operates in the 4,200 to 4,400 MHz range. Thus, 5G in Brazil is at least 500 MHz away from the operating frequency of this equipment, while in the United States this distance is little more than 200 MHz”, states the note.

In this sense, Anatel considers that the greater distance between the bands generates “better conditions for coexistence and lower risks of interference in the Brazilian territory”. Therefore, he stated that the release schedule for the 3.5 GHz band is maintained in Brazil.

However, the agency said that “if Anatel identifies the need for additional measures to protect equipment used by aircraft, these will be adopted and disclosed in due course.”

Anatel also stated that the Embraer sent a letter to the agency with the intention of carrying out flight and ground tests on the susceptibility of aircraft produced by the company in relation to 5G. The performance of the tests is being evaluated by the agency.

Reference: CNN Brasil

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