Mobile phones allowed on board as from next year

Post by **luchtzak** » 05 Jul 2005, 14:43

Last night I wrote this article: https://www.aviation24.be/article9221.html

As from next year mobile phones will be allowed on board German airlines, the German Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Housing will lift that particular ban. The German Aerospace Centre (DLR) says that mobile phone signals do not interfere with onboard electronics.

When switched on the current mobile phones are of no use at 37.000 feet but Airbus says it prepares to equip their Airbus A320-series with their 'Mobile Phone Technology'.

Meanwhile Ericsson has developped a GSM on Aircraft system allowing passengers to use their mobile phones on board commercial aircrafts.

What's your opinion about this next big step in the aviation industry? Think that somebody is sitting next to you and talking on the phone during the entire trans-atlantic flight! Business-related passengers can send e-mails, chat, surf the web at 35.000 feet. 4 phones ringing all the time, a kid playing with his ringtones, service interuption as one of the business class passengers was on the phone

What's your opinion about the mobile phone usage on airlines?

B737229 · Post by **B737229** » 05 Jul 2005, 15:42

Already people using their mobiles at the gate can be very anoying. Just imagine taking a long haul flight, 12h nonstop , trying to take a snooze with these mobiles going off every couple of minutes!

chunk · Post by **chunk** » 05 Jul 2005, 16:24

I hope the airlines take it upon themselves to make sure this does not happen. It is bad enough when people with loud voices are talking to eachother on the plane but voices go un-naturally louder whn on a mobile so it will be worse.

Stupid and completely un-necessary.

Avro · Post by **Avro** » 05 Jul 2005, 17:20

I totally agree with you .

I don't want to sit in a plane where mobile phones are allowed.

Imagine all the noise it does when there are 150 in a plane. You will here ringings all the time........

It's very annoying.

Sad move IMHO

Chris

VC10 · Post by **VC10** » 05 Jul 2005, 17:31

I am in complete agreement!!

There is nothing worse than some ignoramus (and there are plenty of those) yelling into their stupid mobiles for all and sundry to hear. Mobiles have their (limited) uses emergencies etc., but, please, can we be spared from their idiot users on flights - long or short haul!!

Post by **sn26567** » 05 Jul 2005, 17:57

I join the general opinion: a definite NO!

Airline managers who are reading Luchtzak, please take note.

liebensd · Post by **liebensd** » 05 Jul 2005, 17:57

Already people using their mobiles at the gate can be very anoying. Just imagine taking a long haul flight, 12h nonstop , trying to take a snooze with these mobiles going off every couple of minutes!

I suppose that won't be a big problem, because there is no coverage. What is the distance a mobile antenna can cover? 10Km? So when you are flying over the atlantic the problem will be solved. Even when flying at an high altitude I think you won't get a high coverage. If the aircraft doesn't have a mobilephone to satellite switch system, then there won't be a big problem I think.

Greetz,

Dave

earthman · Post by **earthman** » 05 Jul 2005, 18:06

Just bring a GSM signal jammer on board, no more annoying people talking on the phone.

Up in the air the airlines will probably provide an on-board GSM picocell with satellite connection to the rest of the global phone network. Can't imagine it being much cheaper than current on-board phones.

B744skipper · Post by **B744skipper** » 05 Jul 2005, 18:21

liebensd wrote:I suppose that won't be a big problem, because there is no coverage. What is the distance a mobile antenna can cover? 10Km? So when you are flying over the Atlantic the problem will be solved. Even when flying at an high altitude I think you won't get a high coverage. If the aircraft doesn't have a mobile phone to satellite switch system, then there won't be a big problem I think.

Unfortunately not liebensd, there was an item on this subject on German television yesterday. The signals of the mobile phones will be bundled together, and send to a satellite, and that satellite will send it to the ground again. So almost everywhere one can get coverage then.

Luckily, it was also stated that this technology would cost the customer about 10 times what it costs on the ground, so the nightmare scenario of someone calling through the entire flight will be unlikely. Nevertheless it will be irritating as hell when mobile phones will ring and people will have conversation onboard. I want to be able to relax on especially longer flight, without being bothered by nose (and then it does not matter if it is the ring tone of a phone, loud conversations between people or screaming kids).

In trains there are also some silent parts, where mobile phones are not allowed, so at least airlines should have something like that too. One could also get "rid" of screaming kids and other disturbances onboard.
But airlines should not even start allowing this "bad habit", and make sure that mobile phones won't disturb others. Also, if one necessarily needs to be reached, he can use his e-mail onboard, or let his mobile run silent and send SMS or so (but I'm not sure if it is technological possible to allow only SMS' to be send).

Nevertheless, I'm on the no camp for sure. At least not in a way which will disturb other passengers, but when the things run silent (only send SMS or so), then I could tend to yes. But then there also would be e-mail onboard.

A318 · Post by **A318** » 05 Jul 2005, 22:01

I agree with the rest here, just NO!
Imagine a 15 hour flight with aprox 300+ passengers and 10% of them will make phonecalls, that would mean 30 people will be shouting in their phones :8
Please no don't start with this, people are flying and try to relax onboard. I can not imagine this decision makes people really happy.

Erwin

n5528p · Post by **n5528p** » 06 Jul 2005, 08:58

I totally agree with the rest of the bunch concerning normal phone calls, but would not have a problem with data services or silenced short messages.

But having complete voice coverage from DXB to SYD

Regards, Bernhard

lastrow · Post by **lastrow** » 06 Jul 2005, 09:12

from what I have read in some German aviation magazine, the Airbus people are considering all your concerns about the use of mobile phones. There will be a picocell and as said, phone calls and SMS will be more expensive than on the ground.

But more important, the gsm picocell will support different modes of operation in order to ensure a quite cabin at sleeping times - just like the cabin is darkened already. Different modes are SMS-traffic only and no traffic at all for example. So there is the plan to allow telephone calls only in a defined period - still bad because I guess for short flights within Europe there is no chance to let the passengers sleep anyway.

-lr.

Comet · Post by **Comet** » 06 Jul 2005, 10:49

VC10 has said much of what I think. Here you get people using them on trains, and they are a damned nuisance and totally intrusive because the people using them always feel the needs to almost yell into the damned things. Flying was a nice way to escape the scourge and travel in peace, but obviously not for much longer.

bigjulie · Post by **bigjulie** » 10 Jul 2005, 05:50

A very big NO! from me, as well; there cannot be anything more annoying on a long flight than having cellphones going off in you ear all flight long. :stop:
Yes, I do use a cellphone, but, when I am going on a flight that cellphone is going to be swicthed off before I get on the plane

lastrow · Post by **lastrow** » 11 Jul 2005, 17:23

today heise.de, a German It news provider posted this message:

http://www.heise.de/newsticker/meldung/61565

It basically says that Siemens became partner in the Joint Venture OnAir, which is Airbus' effort to bring mobile telephony to their planes. Siemens will start to equip Airbus 320-family planes in the second half '06: installation in new ones and upgrades of existing ones. It is also saying that the crew will be able to block voice traffic.

looks like the issue went through already. :-/

-lr.

n5528p · Post by **n5528p** » 11 Jul 2005, 18:51

lastrow wrote:But more important, the gsm picocell will support different modes of operation in order to ensure a quite cabin at sleeping times - just like the cabin is darkened already. Different modes are SMS-traffic only and no traffic at all for example. So there is the plan to allow telephone calls only in a defined period - still bad because I guess for short flights within Europe there is no chance to let the passengers sleep anyway.

IT is not only about sleeping, but people want to read or watch a movie and so on. Furthermore, on long hauls people get somewhat sensible after some hours... I do not think this is a good idea.

Mentioning the price is completely uselessin a cabin of 300+ people, as well as mentioning the SMS-only mode, if the sms cannot be delivered without having the phone playing some melody. The senders (or callers for that matter) probably do not know that the receiver is in the air - just think of a train, how many short messages are delivered in a train of 30 people?

Regards, Bernhard

Post by **sn26567** » 12 Jul 2005, 08:39

It is probably a done deal. I saw this morning a report on EuroNews. Siemens and Airbus WILL introduce the GSM on the Airbus A320 family planes in 2006, due to heavy demand, especially in the business class section. The cost will be around 1 euro per minute, via a satellite link.

Tant pis for the people who are annoyed. The airlines will probably prefer additional revenue from the service than happy passengers. Anyway, some passengers are happy only when they can keep callling their friends and tell 'you know where I am? At 36,000 feet, between Iceland and the Hudson Bay!'.

C-117 · Post by **C-117** » 12 Jul 2005, 09:32

Not no, but HELL NO! For all the reasons above, AND the fact that any sense of privacy and solitude is continually being withered away from the "average" traveler. I recall when "half the fun was getting there". And, that included the trip to the airport - it was an event - not a chore. With cellular yapping on board, people now have one more item to add to the disdain of flying.

hvv · Post by **hvv** » 14 Jul 2005, 20:24

I'm working in the standards and regulations area of mobile telephony. There are still quite a number of issues that haven't been resolved.

The Airbus project is only one of a number of competing efforts, using different technologies. Terrestrial mobile providers have been rather unhappy about the proposals and do quiet lobbying against interference with their systems.

Another issue is, which regulatory telecoms body is responsible? Consider a French plane flying in US air space - if there is interference with a system on the ground, do French or US rules apply?

The last word has not yet been said, but it is obvious that there is an interest in providing this possibility (however much many passengers may dislike it).

Post by **sn26567** » 15 Jul 2005, 09:06

Thanks for your views from inside, hvv.

It is sure that there is a demand for high-heeled business class passengers. But do they have the right to disturb all the passengers that would be incommodated by the continuous vociferations of these workaholics?

It seems that the SMS-only solution would sound like the best compromise.