Nasa is testing how 5G could help future air taxis communicate with each other and reduce the risk of collisions.
5G networks are capable of managing masses of data at once and have very low signal latency compared with satellite systems – features that lend themselves well to providing location data between aircraft in busy city skies. Ground antennae and networks in cities can help air taxis stay connected as they fly over buildings, making urban flights safer.
But 5G is also poor at penetrating walls and buildings – especially at the higher-frequency, mmWave end of the spectrum. This can make it prone to signal dropouts that have the potential to hamper air taxis.
“The goal of this research is to understand how wireless cellphone networks could be leveraged by the aviation industry to enable new frontiers of aviation operations,” said Casey Bakula, lead researcher for the project.
“The findings of this work could serve as a blueprint for future aviation communication network providers...