All the buzz in the US business community about the possibilities presented by the newly available spectrum known as CBRS – Citizens Broadband Radio Service – has put a spotlight on the various use cases that CBRS can support in airports, including connected assets, integrated real-time communication, digital load control and remote uploading/offloading of data. In light of the many benefits it offers, we expect that at least 80% of all private networks at American airports will operate on CBRS spectrum in the years ahead.
A growing number of airports are already running into the challenge of public LTE and Wi-Fi networks with coverage limitations and/or capacity issues, and are on the lookout for a wireless solution that offers more freedom and flexibility. Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) is a new spectrum-sharing approach that gives enterprises and public facilities in the United States the robust, reliable connectivity required to meet the needs of their employees, customers and other users both today and in the future.
CBRS is particularly well suited to support high-priority wireless communication use cases in the areas of tracking assets and goods, biometrics, security and safety, baggage tracking, check-in and boarding management. Beyond the freedom and flexibility that CBRS can provide to airport operators, it also provides them with an excellent opportunity to monetize their private network investment.
What is CBRS?
Citizens Broadband Radio Service refers to 150MHz of mid-band spectrum in the 3.5GHz to 3.7GHz range that the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) recently designated for use by three types of users: incumbent users (mainly the US Navy and commercial fixed satellite stations), priority access license (PAL) users and general authorized access (GAA) users. The PAL tier is for those that have purchased spectrum licenses, while the GAA tier is unlicensed spectrum that is available for free.
On top of the many advantages that CBRS spectrum offers to wireless carriers and cable operators, it can also be used by other types of enterprises, including airports, to build their own 4G or 5G private wireless networks. In contrast to Wi-Fi, CBRS is ideal for supporting both indoor and outdoor use cases, as well as the kind of mixed indoor/outdoor use cases typically found in airports.
Advantages of CBRS for airports
CBRS is a game changer for all types of private networks because it makes valuable and protected 3.5GHz spectrum available for the first time. While airports don’t need to pay for a license to use CBRS spectrum, they do need to request access. Since only registered users can use CBRS, the airport decides who installs the infrastructure and it has the ability to limit the deployment of competing CBRS networks within its footprint.
An airport can use up to 150MHz of CBRS spectrum in its private network. The fact that 3.5GHz spectrum is available and used worldwide, mostly in public networks, ensures that the devices and equipment used for CBRS-based private networks will not be specialized niche-type devices – on the contrary, they will be widely available and affordable. And if airports choose to build their networks on upgradeable equipment, they have the option of starting out with LTE first and upgrading to 5G at some point in the future.
Accessing CBRS spectrum
The FCC has certified a group of companies including to serve as Spectrum Access System (SAS) managers with the responsibility to coordinate the use of the CBRS spectrum. The process is simple: requests to use the CBRS band are made through the SAS cloud-based system. The system checks to see if the spectrum is available in the desired geographic location, and if it is, the request will be granted. Ericsson has strong relationships with the SAS managers and is happy to guide airport operators through this process if needed.
To handle GAA and PAL spectrum, Ericsson’s private 5G solution includes an FCC-certified domain proxy that provides a secure point in the enterprise network to interface with SAS. This enables Ericsson’s private 5G industrial customers in the US to quickly and reliably access CBRS spectrum as per FCC regulations.
How CBRS fits into an airport’s existing wireless infrastructure
It’s important to be clear about the fact that CBRS is not a replacement of an airport’s existing wireless communication technology – it is, rather, a complement that takes the pressure off existing solutions and provides greater capacity to support new technologies in the mid to long term. It ensures reliable connectivity for dedicated, mission-critical systems while at the same time laying the groundwork to support the increasingly demanding systems of the future. Looking ahead, airports will need both Wi-Fi and 5G to support their use cases efficiently, with each technology playing its own connectivity role.
Another benefit of creating an operator-neutral CBRS-based private network is the ability to run on multiple carriers. Airports also have the option to monetize their investment by deploying their private-network infrastructure for operators, if and when necessary.
CBRS at Dallas Love Field Airport
Dallas Love Field Airport, one of the fastest-growing airports in the United States, is a great example of an airport that found that its rapidly expanding operations were leading to underperforming, congested wireless networks. To ensure smooth operations and positive customer experience, the airport was keen to find a high-performance, low-latency connectivity solution and that is exactly what they found with CBRS. On top of expanding wireless coverage and capacity, the CBRS-based private LTE network they have deployed also streamlines operations and IT functions.
CBRS at Dallas-Fort Worth Airport
After completing three comprehensive proofs of concept (PoCs) in the areas of ramp, cargo and terminal services, Dallas-Fort Worth Airport (DFW) – one of the largest airports in the country – has decided to move forward with its plans to build a CBRS-based private 5G network. DFW selected this solution because they want to have control over the network and the data, along with the ability to share the network with airlines and tenants. In their PoCs, they discovered that the coverage, throughput, latency and reliability improvements they achieved with CBRS fundamentally improved the efficiency of services such as baggage handling.
How Ericsson is supporting CBRS technology
Multi-band products are ideal for airports that want to use CBRS because they make it possible to install less equipment while at the same time serving more users and use cases. With this in mind, Ericsson is currently building a Radio Dot product that will have four bands: B48 (CBRS), n41 (2.5 GHz), B25 (1900) and B66 (2100). CBRS can be used for a 4G/5G private network application for airport operations, while B25 and B66 are common licensed bands for all MNOs, so they simultaneously can all deliver 4G and 5G services on these bands, using a Neutral Host configuration.
Conclusion
CBRS-based private networks are the ideal choice for airports that want to ensure the delivery of reliable connectivity to support existing and new use cases across their operations, from the terminals to the ramps, as well as out onto the airfield and in all the cargo areas. A CBRS-based private network gives an airport much greater freedom and flexibility as well as better control over network architecture, coverage, performance, security and technology evolution than public networks that are shared with other users.
To learn more about the benefits of using a CBRS-based private network in an airport, check out our Connected Aviation report.
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