| Poll |
| Mobiles on planes OK not OK |
| Yes but only for text |
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25% |
[ 3 ] |
| Yes full useability |
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8% |
[ 1 ] |
| No, never |
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66% |
[ 8 ] |
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| Total Votes : 12 |
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| Author |
Message |
shanghaiceltic
Board Royalty
Joined: Sep 20, 2005
Posts: 7619
Location: Perth WA
Status: Offline
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 Posted:
Dec 17, 2007 - 12:32 PM |
 
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| Post subject: Mobiles on planes? |
I am not for voice calls, but maybe text.
Mobile phones on planes
Your call
Dec 13th 2007
From The Economist print edition
Passengers are being asked for their views on the in-flight use of phones
LIKE many flights, the use of mobile phones on aircraft has been subject to unexpected delays. But some passengers, at least, are now sending text messages and e-mails, and soon an Air France plane will go further. Once it has reached its cruising altitude, its “fasten seatbelt” sign will be switched off—and so will a new “no phones” light alongside it. Passengers will then be able to switch on their handsets and make and receive calls.
Airlines are unsure what passengers will make of this. Surveys have found that many people are vehemently against the idea, but others say they would welcome the opportunity to text, access the internet or make calls. So airlines plan to test the market before deciding how and when to allow phones to be used in the air.
This week JetBlue, a low-cost carrier based in New York, launched a free but limited Wi-Fi data service on one of its Airbus A320 aircraft, in partnership with Yahoo!, an internet giant, and Research in Motion, the maker of the BlackBerry. Passengers using Wi-Fi-enabled laptops can use Yahoo!'s mail and instant-messaging services; those with Wi-Fi-capable BlackBerrys can get their e-mail. (The system uses a national network of special ground stations to provide connectivity.) There is no support for voice calls, following the Federal Communications Commission's decision in March that the in-flight use of mobile phones would not be permitted.
But in other parts of the world, voice calling will be allowed. Air France's test will begin on an Airbus A318 in the next few weeks. Rather than Wi-Fi, it relies on a tiny mobile-phone base-station installed on the plane. At first it will allow only mobile-data access and text messaging, but after three months the voice service will be switched on, too. “We will give a questionnaire to every passenger to see what they think before we make a decision to equip more aircraft,” says Marina Tymen of Air France. “If people say they want data but no calls, that will not be a problem.”
Data could prove to be popular because it is less intrusive than voice calls. Qantas, Australia's flag carrier, has quietly been trying out a data-only service on one of its Boeing 767s. Since it was installed in April, some 19,000 passengers have used mobile devices for texting and e-mails, says AeroMobile, the British firm that supplied the system. More airlines will join in during 2008. AeroMobile is fitting out an Emirates aircraft for data and voice. Ryanair's aircraft are being kitted out by OnAir, a rival technology provider that supplied the Air France system and is backed by Airbus. As Europe's pushiest low-cost carrier, Ryanair thinks passengers on its short, busy flights will not mind texting and calls, because the money it raises will help keep fares low (callers will be billed at international roaming rates, with airlines taking a cut). It plans to equip all 150 of its aircraft.
Passengers will still have to keep their phones switched off during take-off and landing. This is to reduce the risk of interference with aircraft instruments—though the main reason why the use of mobiles has hitherto been banned on aircraft is, in fact, to avoid disruption of networks on the ground as lots of handsets pass overhead at high speed. New systems get around this problem by blocking out ground-based signals within the aircraft, so that phones connect to the on-board “picocell” instead. This is then linked by satellite to ground-based networks.
Satellite links have the advantage that they will work even over oceans. The equipment is also much lighter and cheaper than an elaborate earlier generation of satellite technology, which provided Wi-Fi access on some aircraft, but was never widely adopted. Now that the technology works, it is up to passengers and airlines to decide the rules governing its use. Will data prove most popular, with voice access limited to short-haul flights and brief periods at the start and end of long-haul flights? You make the call. |
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I have parrallel bars at home, one for gin and one for whiskey |
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jzzzzzzz
SuperStar
Joined: July 07, 2006
Posts: 1390
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
Dec 17, 2007 - 12:48 PM |
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I travel frequently short haul and long haul and the only thing I like about it is that my phone is out of range for a while. No calls or emails for the time I'm on the plane. My boss is in the US and most of my colleagues are in the UK so I end up working confusing hours every week so my travel time becomes forced downtime. |
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findus
Veejay
Joined: Feb 03, 2004
Posts: 1829
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
Dec 17, 2007 - 02:19 PM |
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Ah, just imagine a 12-hour flight full of locals with the ability to make/recieve calls and send messages.... air-rage, anyone? |
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hammerforlife
Fire-eater
Joined: May 24, 2004
Posts: 2701
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| Posted:
Dec 17, 2007 - 02:38 PM |
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| findus wrote: |
| Ah, just imagine a 12-hour flight full of locals with the ability to make/recieve calls and send messages.... air-rage, anyone? |
Exactly. Especially with the time difference and a whole plane full of people receiving calls at 3am when you're trying to sleep.
I'll vote for never but I suspect that it will happen anyway. |
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Missin
Reacher
Joined: June 22, 2007
Posts: 245
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Dec 17, 2007 - 03:00 PM |
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I voted no for the sake of having some peace and quiet on the long haul...or even the short haul. Though I did accidentally leave mine on one time. No calls...no one ever calls me.  |
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I am back! (sounds of crickets cricketing...) |
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bougie
Board Buddha
Joined: Nov 20, 2004
Posts: 13323
Location: Wuhan Hubei China
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Dec 17, 2007 - 09:52 PM |
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I'd like to vote for marbels |
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BS
Reacher
Joined: Sep 12, 2007
Posts: 238
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Dec 18, 2007 - 08:46 AM |
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Wei... Weii? WEI..? WEIIII????
Sani? Saani??
Wei, ni gang....
Oh God. Please spare us. |
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tomnoddy_uk
Fire-eater
Joined: Mar 14, 2006
Posts: 2912
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Dec 18, 2007 - 10:24 AM |
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i guess they would have no call zones like no-smoking zones if they did it?? |
_________________
"Eight minutes past the hour here in Belgium - and presumably eight minutes past the hour everywhere in the world." Murray Walker |
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shanghaiceltic
Board Royalty
Joined: Sep 20, 2005
Posts: 7619
Location: Perth WA
Status: Offline
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| Posted:
Dec 18, 2007 - 03:30 PM |
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True but there are constant requests to turn off mobiles here in theaters and cinemas, who listens? |
_________________
I have parrallel bars at home, one for gin and one for whiskey |
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