Cell Phones On Airplanes

[wdfifteen]

The DoT is considering allowing cell phone use on passenger planes that have cell service. Right now you can use a phone if you have a web-based phone - Skype or something like that, but they are considering either offering regular cell service on airliners or banning in-flight voice phone communication all together.
I'm against it. I don't want to be crammed in a seat trying to read or get some work done while sitting nest to a woman, hearing an hour long, one-sided conversation about her anal cysts.
Mrs WD thinks it's a great idea. She does need to contact our office often and it would be useful for her. I can see her point. I guess short essential calls could be OK, but long social chats would be a huge annoyance.
Maybe it could be regulated by price. One minute free, $5 a minute after that.
What say you?

[gprsh924]

Please no.

Impossible to regulate what is an "essential" call. The last thing a flight needs is idiots yammering away on their phones. Internet in flight is becoming more prevalent (and hopefully faster/more useful). Use chat to communicate if you need to, but no phone calls.

[wayner]

Almost 20 years ago in Sweden they implemented a rule on local trains with cell phone and no cel phone cars, so that people could have a safe haven.

I don't know why when someone talks on the phone to another person far away that they feel they have to talk louder???

( BTW, call me passive aggressive, but, whenever anyone starts talking on a cell phone in a public washroom I always loudly flush immediately)

[masraum]

Just take headphones with you. That way you won't have to hear them whether they are on the phone or trying to talk to you or the person in the seat on the other side of them.

[jhynesrockmtn]

Back in the mid 90's when I was working at what was then McCaw Cellular, AT&T bought us. We had a subsidiary that was one of 3 licensees of air to ground phone service. This was a cell based technology specific to commercial and private aircraft. The "cells" were shared by all 3 and engineered to work at altitude. The whole model was conceived when mobile phone rates were upwards of $1 per minute and roaming charges were much higher. The pricing on the plane was like $4.95 per minute. The whole business model was a big failure. I took over the CFO role after AT&T realized what they had bought and how much money was being sucked down the drain. I was asked to evaluate the model and give them feedback. By this time cell rates had dropped and the service wasn't used much. Folks could wait the avg. of a couple of hours to make calls. The other feedback was the privacy issues. I advised them to sell if they could which did happen before the whole thing cratered and all 3 shut the service down. Given that many aircraft now have wifi available and apps and phones can access this for voice calls it is coming. I always take noise cancelling headphones on planes.

[jyl]

I say no. Flights have WiFi, everyone can use text to communicate. The wiFi should block Skype and other voice calling.

[HardDrive]

If you can text and email, there really is no need for voice. I vote no. Who wants to listen to some asshat blare on and on.

[wayner]

With compressed seating, keep your elbows in and stay calm and quiet. We'll all get through this togetherand the unpleasantness of flight will be over soon...

[masraum]

Originally Posted by jyl

I say no. Flights have WiFi, everyone can use text to communicate. The wiFi should block Skype and other voice calling.

Originally Posted by HardDrive

If you can text and email, there really is no need for voice. I vote no. Who wants to listen to some asshat blare on and on.

Gents, texting doesn't use wifi. It uses cell data (except for iPhone to iPhone where "iMessage" uses wifi rather than cell if it's available).

[id10t]

Originally Posted by masraum

Gents, texting doesn't use wifi. It uses cell data (except for iPhone to iPhone where "iMessage" uses wifi rather than cell if it's available).

SMS texting doesn't use wifi - but there are LOTS of text based communication methods that do. Heck, one of my coworkers uses ICQ on her phone instead of text messages.... lets her get w/ her parents on a laptop, etc.

[legion]

Let's see, I have to wait in long lines get molested at the airport, I can't bring anything useful in carry-on, and I get charged extra to put useful stuff in checked baggage. I already haven't flown in 2.5 years. If I have to listen to self-important morons scream into their cell phones while in the air, I will probably never fly again.

[BE911SC]

The cellular industry has wanted this since the beginning and they'll probably get it this time.

[Hawkeye's-911T]

I don't know why when someone talks on the phone to another person far away that they feel they have to talk louder???

I too have never been able to figure why this is so. And obtw, this is also good material for the 'Pet Peeve' thread. Air travel for us not in business class, to wit: 'steerage' is onerous enough without having to suffer some PITA dunderhead babbling incessantly on their cell.

Cheers
JB

[onewhippedpuppy]

IF, and it's a big if because of the distraction that phones pose, the FAA were to allow phone use on airplanes, it would be a while before all aircraft were retrofit with the technology to allow airborne cellular service. After that, I guarantee that airlines will charge for the service, just like wifi.

[SpyderMike]

Originally Posted by jhynesrockmtn

Back in the mid 90's when I was working at what was then McCaw Cellular, AT&T bought us. We had a subsidiary that was one of 3 licensees of air to ground phone service. This was a cell based technology specific to commercial and private aircraft. The "cells" were shared by all 3 and engineered to work at altitude. The whole model was conceived when mobile phone rates were upwards of $1 per minute and roaming charges were much higher. The pricing on the plane was like $4.95 per minute. The whole business model was a big failure. I took over the CFO role after AT&T realized what they had bought and how much money was being sucked down the drain. I was asked to evaluate the model and give them feedback. By this time cell rates had dropped and the service wasn't used much. Folks could wait the avg. of a couple of hours to make calls. The other feedback was the privacy issues. I advised them to sell if they could which did happen before the whole thing cratered and all 3 shut the service down. Given that many aircraft now have wifi available and apps and phones can access this for voice calls it is coming. I always take noise cancelling headphones on planes.

Small world...I worked at the company that made the install kits for all of those early phone systems. We also installed a lot of them.

[Gogar]

csn you imagine someone yammering away next to you ....... on speaker? It'll happen.

[Gogar]

Yammering

[legion]

"No, no, the doctor said the rash shouldn't be contagious anymore. The rash was caused by the crabs anyway. [Pauses while listening.] Yeah, it's a funny story how I got crabs in my ear. That reminds me, it's time to put some cream on. [Pauses.] Yep, talk to you later. [Hangs up.]"

Turns to you: "Would you mind holding my phone? I've got to run to the bathroom."

[cashflyer]

[Cajundaddy]

Email and text? Yes please. Voice phone calls throughout the flight by 300 of your closest friends? No thank you.