ATLANTA — Delta Air Lines mentioned Thursday that it has accomplished upgrading its fleet to guard key gear in opposition to interference from 5G wi-fi indicators, plugging a gap that would have disrupted flights throughout low visibility.
The airline mentioned all its planes in lively use now have radio altimeters which might be protected in opposition to interference.
“This means no Delta aircraft will be subject to additional weather-driven constraints,” a Delta spokesman mentioned.
In late June, 190 of Delta’s roughly 900 planes lacked the upgraded altimeters. Those units use radio indicators to exactly measure the peak of a airplane above the bottom.
The problem compelled Delta to think about rerouting these planes to keep away from low-visibility conditions whereas it waited for brand new elements from a provider, though the airline mentioned Thursday that it obtained by summer time with out notable issues with altimeters.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg pushed airways to retrofit planes earlier than the summer time journey season, and most did. Among the biggest U.S. carriers, solely Atlanta-based Delta missed a July 1 deadline to improve all altimeters earlier than AT&T, Verizon and different wi-fi carriers boosted the ability of their C-Band, 5G indicators. Flight disruptions, which some had expressed concern about, didn’t materialize, nevertheless.
Some aviation specialists and the Federal Aviation Administration imagine that C-Band indicators are too near frequencies utilized by radio altimeters. The Federal Communications Commission, which granted 5G licenses to the wi-fi firms, has mentioned there is no such thing as a threat of interference.
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