Airports Council Joins Aviation Coalition to Warn of Travel Disruptions

January 3, 2022

Airports Council International – North America (ACI-NA), the trade association representing commercial service airports in the United States and Canada, today joined a broad coalition of airports, airlines, aircraft manufacturers, and other aviation stakeholders to call for a delay in expanding 5G technology nationwide.  The coalition’s full statement is below.

Aviation Stakeholder Coalition Calls for Delay of 5G Over Safety Concerns

Arlington, Va. (Jan. 3, 22) – Key aviation stakeholders representing airlines, manufacturers, airports and associations today issued the following statement calling on the White House to avoid further disruptions to the aviation environment by delaying the rollout of C-Band 5G signals:

“Time has run out and it’s imperative that the White House intervene today to delay the imminent rollout of C-band 5G signals. Starting Wednesday, the disruptions to our country’s aviation system are going to be incredibly challenging, especially at a time when the industry is currently experiencing COVID-related operational issues.

“We are just hours away from this C-band 5G rollout, yet the aviation industry is still anxiously awaiting details on how aviation will be impacted and on how crew members will need to operate to maintain safety and minimize disruptions.

“The United States has the safest aviation system on the planet and it is imperative that we do all it takes to keep it that way. As stakeholders, we have been working for years on identifying a path forward that would benefit all parties – but the FCC, AT&T and Verizon have been unwilling to participate. We respectfully call on President Biden to intervene and delay the full implementation of C-band 5G until proper risk assessments have taken place and crewmembers are fully briefed as to the extent of the disruptions.”

Aerospace Industries Association

Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association

Airports Council International – North America

Experimental Aircraft Association

General Aviation Manufacturers Association

Helicopter Association International

International Air Transport Association

National Air Carrier Association

National Business Aviation Association

Regional Airline Association

 

About ACI-NA

Airports Council International-North America (ACI-NA) represents local, regional, and state governing bodies that own and operate commercial airports in the United States and Canada. ACI-NA member airports enplane more than 95 percent of the domestic and virtually all the international airline passenger and cargo traffic in North America. Approximately 380 aviation-related businesses are also members of ACI-NA, providing goods and services to airports. Collectively, U.S. airports support more than 11.5 million jobs and account for $1.4 trillion in economic activity – or more than seven percent of the total U.S. GDP. Canadian airports support 405,000 jobs and contribute C$35 billion to Canada’s GDP. Learn more at www.airportscouncil.org.