EU Commission wants to allow 5G on planes

People traveling by plane may not need to turn on Airplane mode in the future. The EU Commission has decided that airlines are allowed to provide mobile data and 5G technology on board.

“Please switch off all electronic devices or activate flight mode.” People who travel by plane are familiar with the flight attendant’s announcement shortly before departure. However, this step for passengers could soon be eliminated.

Because the European Commission has loud BBC decided that airlines would be allowed to deploy 5G technology on board alongside slower mobile data.

Airplane mode not as harmful as thought

In the past, experts didn’t know exactly how cellphones affected aircraft and their control systems, UK Air Safety Board executive director Dai Whittingham told the BBC.

That’s why it was important in the past to activate flight mode. However, experience has shown that the risk of disruption is very low.

Without flight mode: Passengers should be able to use all the functions of their devices

As early as 2008, the EU Commission reserved certain frequency bands for aircraft. Internet access on board should therefore be possible for some services. However, the connection was very slow in the past due to the technical requirements.

Future download of 100 Mbit per second

The new system should be able to guarantee faster download speeds. According to the mobile network EE, even more than 100 Mbit per second are possible. For example, users could download films in just a few minutes.

How the current decision of the EU Commission is to be implemented in detail is still unclear. However, the member states of the European Union must make the frequencies required for 5G available by June 30, 2023.

This would mean that from next summer passengers will be able to use all the functions of their mobile devices on the plane as normal – including calling and messaging services as well as music and video apps.

The sky is no longer the limit

The plan will enable innovative services for people and boost the growth of European companies, said EU Commissioner for the Internal Market, Thierry Breton.

The sky is no longer the limit when it comes to the possibility of a super-fast, high-capacity connection, Breton said.

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