The Biggest Questions Airlines Need to Answer Amid 5G Chaos

Just as AT&T (T 1.17%) and Verizon Communications (VZ 2.85%) were getting ready to launch 5G C-band spectrum, the CEOs of several airlines, in a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Federal Communications Commission (FCC), warned that 5G could cause interference with systems on airplanes.

In this video clip from "Editorial" on Motley Fool Live, recorded on Jan. 18, Fool.com contributors Lou Whiteman and John Bromels discuss what's behind the airlines' pushback, and what questions still need to be answered.

Lou Whiteman: The airlines have been quite good at blaming everybody for why they've needed cancellation so I guess why not add 5G? But look, COVID is the reason, and they've said COVID. I think if they do need to take a plane out of the sky, it probably will be because of this and concerns. I don't think they are just looking for a scapegoat, but as probably the biggest apologist for the industry at Fooldom. Maybe I might have a rival there.

I don't get this because I didn't really pay attention in high school physics, but I don't remember them saying that properties of physics work differently in different parts of the world. As you mentioned, 5G C-band has been up and running in Europe since mid last year and we are yet to have any problem so I don't understand how. Maybe physics is different in German, I don't know. The interesting thing about this to me though is that the U.S. attention to the issue is having a blowback in Europe and having the European regulators question, "Wait, should we march this back?"

I think what this desperately needs is some global consensus, or at least Western world consensus and quick. I think that that's where we're headed. I can't imagine they will have the green light to roll out unfettered. There'll be at least restrictions near the airport simply because on the telecom side of this, worst-case scenario is we don't rollout our new technology. On the airline side of this, worst-case scenario is a plane falls from the sky. I think they're going to defer to the safety so I would be surprised if it's just that. But there is something weird going on here, either the European regulators aren't really known for under-regulating, normally. [laughs] I don't know.

John Bromels: If anything, it's the opposite.

Whiteman: Right. It is a weird thing to watch. I'm guessing they err on the side of safety and this is yet another just sub-chapter in the drama that has been 5G and all of that, but that's for a different show. It is a weird time for airlines because whether or not they're using an excuse or not, it is yet another problem on top of what has been a really crummy go at it for a while.

Bromels: Honestly, as I said, AT&T and Verizon, they've already agreed to buffer zones around the 50 largest airports. What I'm a little unclear on is in the letter, the CEOs are saying, "We want a buffer zone of two miles around a group of airports that has been identified." Unfortunately, I couldn't figure out exactly what group of airports that was, whether that's the 50, whether it's more, and I also couldn't figure out what exactly the buffer zone is that's been agreed to already. However, clearly, they must be wanting more than one of those because that is what they are asking for. They are asking for a two-mile buffer zone around a group of airports.

I can't tell whether they want more airports to have the buffer zone, they want the buffer zone itself to be larger, a combination of both. I'm a little unclear as to what is being asked. I'm also a little unclear about exactly why more of the fleets, because they already thought that some of the oldest planes in the fleet were operating their altimeters and some other equipment in this bandwidth spectrum. Of course, it's a one-page letter basically so of course it doesn't go into great detail. But I'm also a little unclear as to why they think more of the fleets are going to be affected. I am not sure whether they have discovered that there's other technology using this bandwidth on a bunch of airplanes that they didn't previously know about, or they've done some tests with distance and they've discovered that there's potentially interference coming at a closer range than they thought or a further range than they thought. It's just a little unclear.