The two companies that hope to use a swath of radio spectrum to launch the next generation of wireless phone technology starting Wednesday said they’ll delay its deployment around some airports to ensure aviation safety.
AT&T, which along with Verizon last year bought a swath of spectrum for more than $80 billion, said in a statement early Tuesday that it will “temporarily defer” turning on some of the towers it had planned to use to deploy 5G in order to ensure they don’t interfere with aircraft radar altimeters, which help planes navigate in low-visibility situations.
Verizon followed suit hours later, saying it would “voluntarily” limit its 5G network around airports where it might interfere with aircraft operations.
