The European Union has ruled that by June 2023, airlines can provide 5G technology and slower mobile data access onboard planes. Based on this ruling, passengers could say goodbye to setting their smartphones on airplane mode while airborne.
The commission is confident that implementing mobile communications on-board aircraft will pave the way for a wider-spread deployment of 5G services.
EU member states will now have to make the 5G frequency bands available for passengers to use their phones midflight for calls and possibly use data heavy apps to stream music and video. According to the EU, passengers aboard flights in the EU will be able to use their mobile phones to the maximum of their capacity and features, just like with a ground-based 5G mobile network.
The EU Commission had in 2008 reserved frequency bands for aircrafts to allow some services to offer mid-air internet access but the plan did not exactly take off.
In 2020, The US Federal Communications Commission protested plans to allow in-flight voice and data services via mobile wireless frequencies, saying that there was strong opposition including from airline pilots and flight attendants on safety and national security grounds.
Meanwhile, the EUs proposed 5G connection will be provided using special network equipment called a pico-cell that connect the in-flight network to the ground via a satellite.
