Avionics
Buttigieg: July 1 Hard Deadline for 5G C-band Radalt Compliance
Airliners not in compliance will be banned from the U.S. in 2024.
5G tower
(Photo: Jonas Stolle on Unsplash)

The July 1 deadline for airlines to complete 5G C-band tolerant radar altimeter upgrades/alternative methods of compliance will not be moved, according to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) previously noted that the deadline was unrealistic, given ongoing supply-chain issues, and said that the FAA had wildly underestimated the cost of compliance, which the trade association pegged at $638 million. The FAA had estimated $26 million.

Meanwhile, Acting FAA Administrator Billy Nolen warned that airlines that fly noncompliant aircraft after the July 1 deadline will not be able to use low-visibility instrument approaches and, beginning in 2024, would not be able to operate in U.S. airspace.