Together with information technology service provider NTT Ltd., Cologne Bonn Airport is building a completely private 5G mobile phone network across an area of 1,000 hectares. The goal of this joint research and cooperation project is to push ahead with technological innovations such as intelligent luggage checking and border control and to achieve significant improvements in the airport’s operating efficiency.
The Internet of Things (IoT), automated vehicles on the runway and mobile security systems all mean that it is becoming necessary to manage increasingly large quantities of objects and therefore data.
5G enables better connectivity and improved processing of the rapidly growing data flows, which allows the airport, the airlines and the ground handling staff – and also third party companies – to work together more effectively.
NTT is currently developing one of Europe’s largest private 5G mobile phone networks for Cologne Bonn Airport. With complete 5G coverage across the entire 1,000 hectare premises – the equivalent of 1,400 soccer pitches – it will be possible in the future to determine the exact location of devices and people, to transport luggage on self-driving vehicles, and to use autonomous robots to secure the site, as well as to provide intelligent services for the logistics hubs.
The airport has been granted a licence for the project by the Federal Network Agency from the industry spectrum, with frequencies of between 3.7 and 3.8 GHz.