The EU Commission reserved certain frequency bands for aircraft in 2008 and allowed some services to offer internet access in the air. Unfortunately, this service is both slow and expensive. The only alternative for passengers was to put their phones in airplane mode. But these rules are changing.Passengers will no longer have to switch their smartphones to airplane mode or turn them off completely during the flight. The rules are finally changing with new technologies. Airline passengers in the European Union will be able to use all the features of their phones during the flight.
Deadline 30 June 2023
The European Commission announced that they have decided to remove the airplane mode rules. The deadline for EU member states to make 5G frequency bands available for aircraft is June 30, 2023. According to the European Commission, the new system will be able to take advantage of the much higher download speeds provided by 5G and reach over 100Mbps.
5G has no effect on airplanes!
According to Dai Whittingham, Chairman of the UK Flight Safety Committee, the effect of phones on automatic flight control systems is not great. It poses a very low risk of interference.
Worries that 5G frequencies could affect flights and even lead to possible inaccurate altitude readings are also unfounded. Whittingham says there is a different frequency range for 5G and lower power settings than are allowed in America.
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