The US airline industry wants an extension on an impending deadline, saying it has not been able to retrofit all aircraft with 5G mitigation measures.

Wireless carriers and the FCC engaged in a high-stakes battle with the airline industry, backed by the FAA, over 5G rollout in the US. The airline industry was concerned that C-band spectrum purchased by Verizon and AT&T would interfere with aircraft altimeters. After much wrangling back and forth, the parties reached an agreement to ban the deployment of C-band 5G in the immediate vicinity of airports until the industry could retrofit impacted altimeters.

In October we reported that the aviation industry wanted to make some elements of the 5G ban permanent, but Reuters is now reporting that some airlines can’t even meet the initial July 2023 deadline that was established and are asking for an extension.

“It is critical to extend these mitigations through the end of 2023 to allow airlines time to complete the retrofit,” reads a the letter sent to the White House by a coalition of aviation concerns. The letter blamed supply chain issues, saying “air carriers will likely be unable to fully meet either the December 2022 deadlines for smaller regional aircraft and many large transports nor the July 2023 retrofit deadline.”

“Our aviation coalition strongly believes that instead of once again waiting until the eleventh hour, now is the time for the leadership at federal agencies and the White House to implement a solution that allows 5G to move forward and avoid further flight delays and cancellations,” the letter added.

The last round of wrangling did not go well with Congress, with lawmakers criticizing the fact that two government agencies were on opposite sides of such an important issue as 5G deployment. All parties are no doubt anxious to avoid a repeat of that situation.