Helsinki Airport turns 5G 1st in whole world

Helsinki Airport has become the first 5G airport in the world, as Finavia, the operator of the country’s airports, and the telecommunication company Telia on Monday launched a 5G network-based robot project at the airport.

The project aims at exploring the possibilities of using 5G in airport operations and bringing new kinds of experiences to passengers, said a Finavia press release.

It also means Finavia is Telia’s first customer using the pre-commercial 5G network in Finland.

The 5G robot operates in the non-Schengen area of T2 terminal. Telia and Finavia will study how passengers and airport personnel react and interact with an autonomous robot carrying out service tasks.

“The robot can deliver real-time video stream from the terminal and enable, for example, monitoring the terminal area through remote or autonomous control and see that everything is running as it should. The robot can also guide passengers in the terminal, and we aim to try different other uses of it during the project,” said Finavia Chief Digital Officer Heikki Koski.

The data transmission and control of the robot is carried over a 5G base station at the airport. The network based on Nokia’s technology utilises 28 GHz frequency band – the higher frequency band allocated for 5G. This is for the first time this so called millimetre waves are being used for 5G in a public use case in Finland.

Telia Finland 5G Program Director Janne Koistinen said, “5G will start with enterprise customers, especially for industrial automation and remote control. The low-latency connection and massive capacity of 5G will serve the airport well with its masses of passengers and data, and with the focus on security and fluency of services.”