JetBlue CEO warns of potentially more 5G flight disruptions

US airlines may not be out of the the 5G wireless mire yet. At least that’s the view of JetBlue Airways CEO Robin Hayes who warned Thursday that further disruptions are possible as the new high-speed wireless network continues to roll out across the country. “We can’t assume that we are completely out of the 5G woods yet,” he said during the New York-based carrier’s Q4 results call. Hayes described the current process as “iterative” and expressed optimism that the US FAA, Federal Communications Commission (FCC), airlines, and wireless companies are now communicating about the new technology and working to eliminate any safety risks. But operational issues remain despite the work. Some of JetBlue’s Embraer E190 jets are unable to operate in limited visibility conditions at certain airports — including some unnamed major ones — warned Hayes. This will impact a “very low percentage of flights,” he added. US airlines narrowly averted major disruptions last week when telecom companies agreed to voluntarily delay turning on 5G wireless transmitters near certain airports. Many fear that the technology could interfere with the radio altimeters, which tell pilots a plane’s altitude, on many aircraft. Roughly 90% of the US commercial aircraft fleet had been approved for operations near 5G transmitters as of Thursday, according to the FAA. Missing from that list are many regional aircraft, including the Embraer ERJ-145 that is common at both American Airlines and United Airlines. However, as with JetBlue’s E190s, headline approval for 5G operations is not as broad as it may appear. Not every carrier has gone through all of the steps necessary to certify every “approved” aircraft to operate in bad weather near transmitters. And this is causing cancellations. <br/>