Aircraft At Risk With 5G Smartphones Onboard, Experts Warn

Aircraft At Risk With 5G Smartphones Onboard, Experts Warn

Air travellers with 5G phones are being urged to turn them off on planes because the technology can disrupt landing gear, according to the French civil aviation authority.

The latest generation of smartphones and networks, currently being rolled out around the world, can interfere with critical aircraft instruments, says the agency.

This is due to signal interference from the device that could block data coming from altimeters that tell pilots how high above sea level they are flying.

A spokesperson for the agency said: ‘The utilisation of 5G devices onboard aircraft could lead to risks of interference that could potentially result in errors in altitude readings.’

The French Civil Aviation Authority sent a bulletin to airlines recommending that 5G phones should be turned off or put in ‘airplane mode’ during a flight.

The phenomenon is caused by ‘signal interference from a close frequency source of a strength that is similar or even superior to that of altimeters,’ the agency said.

This can cause errors ‘in instruments that are extremely critical during landing.’

It is already a requirement on many flights that mobile phones are turned off or placed in airplane mode during take off and landing.

This is due to previous generations of mobile networks interfering with navigation and communication equipment onboard the aircraft.

But a number of flights have started allowing mobile phones to be used and even have onboard masts to allow passengers to make calls.

However, the French authority has issued a guidance that in a case of disruption to an aircraft’s equipment from a 5G device the air crew should immediately notify air traffic controllers who can alert airport authorities.

5G provides faster connectivity and more bandwidth, meaning higher download speeds for internet users, and more capacity and connectivity for devices.

The nature of the technologies means the waves travel shorter distances so more masts are required to carry the signal.

The agency also told mobile networks to ensure 5G base stations are located so that they limit the risk of interference during landing at French airports.

The signal strength from these base stations near airports is already restricted by the authority, which has been doing further testing since November.

The agency says it will continue to monitor signals from 5G base stations, as well as testing the impact of 5G on flights.

5G has been subject to conspiracy theories and delays since its inception, much like every mobile technology that came before it.

It uses much higher frequency (3 to 300GHz) radio waves than in older technology.

These higher frequencies allow more devices to connect at the same time and faster than 4G, but they travel shorter distances and require more masts at ground level.

Unlike previous wireless transmission systems, 5G ultrahigh-frequency waves are easily interrupted by vegetation foliage and walls, often requiring additional signal boosting within buildings.

The greater number of ground level masts coupled with the higher frequency has fuelled many of the conspiracy theories.

Fears of an increased risk to health such as cancers from the radiation have been expressed, but the World Health Organisation said there was no adverse health effects from mobile phone use generally.

A group of scientists including Dr Frank De Vocht have said there could be a statistical possibility of increased cancer risk for heavy users.

The UK government says small increases in exposure are possible from 5G, but overall it is expected to remain low as the frequencies are non-ionising. They are well below any considered harmful.

Professor John William Frank, a physician and epidemiologist from the University of Edinburgh, says we should ‘err on the side of caution’ by delaying any further roll-out of 5G globally, ‘pending more conclusive research’ on its safety.

Professor Frank does, however, stress the ridiculousness of linking 5G exposures to Covid-19, as suggested by some conspiracy theorists.

He also condemns the recent attacks on 5G masts in the UK which are providing essential communications technology during the pandemic.

Radiation watchdog International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP) has also already stated that 5G is safe and poses ‘no health risks’.

The watchdog found no risks of cancer or other illnesses from exposure to the frequencies used in fifth generation networks, after studying seven years of data.

NHS GP Gero Baiarda said 5G does not weaken the immune system and that viruses cannot travel by radio wave and only enter the body at specific points.

Dr Baiarda dismissed claims that 5G signals act to weaken the human immune system, saying 5G radio waves ‘carry too little energy to cause harm’ and that 5G occupies the same wavelengths ‘as those previously used by analogue TV’.

‘The wavelengths emitted from your microwave oven are more powerful than 5G – both are perfectly safe,’ he said.