I’m sorry, I just can’t put down my phone
After reading Change is in the Air in the March 10th edition of The Economist I was frustrated by the fact that when flying I am still told to turn off my phone. The article corrects the misconception of cellular phones interfere with the aircraft’s avionic systems.
I know you all are just so excited to over hear my phone conversations on our next flight together.
Instead, the problem is that airborne mobile phones disrupt mobile networks on the ground. An airliner with 500 phones on board, whizzing across a city, would befuddle the network as the phones busily hopped from one base-station to the next.Fortunately, someone is doing something about this. Next year the German Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Housing plans to lift the ban of mobile phone use on flights.
I know you all are just so excited to over hear my phone conversations on our next flight together.
4 Comments:
I used to be scared of flying because I was convinced that the shuttle would plummet to the ground, bringing my glorious world to an end. Now, I'm scared of flying because it's one of the last places in the world where you are -- for better or worse -- completely cut off from the rest of the world. Cell phones must be off (in spite of their lack of interference with avionic systems, which is a new term I learned from your post), and one cannot rely on the cheery flight crew to bring me any breaking news occurring on terra firma.
In this modern world, any kind of interference with our mobile 24-hour news cycle is bound for extinction.
Also, Lufthansa is testing out internet access on planes - if you can then do VoIP, will seem odd if you can't also use cellphones.
But if I was a airline, I would be think long and hard about how you implement cellphones on planes...do you have quiet sections, only allow it at certain times? If I am hungover and needing sleep, someone keeping me awake doesn't go well for anyone!
Airplanes are cramped, germy and uncomfortable enough without adding the cacophony of ambivalent jackasses shouting into their cell phones.
It's really the only form of public transportation where it's still possible to enjoy the quiet and catch a few Z's (unless of course there is a screaming baby on board).
I think we should keep it that way. Few people are so very important that they can't go without their cell phones for a few hours.
I wondered just the other day while turning off my cell phone before take off how it could interfere with the plane. I'm glad to know the truth now.
Also, for those people that feel so distrubed by others talking on cell phones, I wonder if it bothers them when two people in the row behind them are having a conversation. Really, what is the difference? Either way you are listening to a conversation whether in person or via a cell phone. Should we just stop talking on planes all together to make these people more comfortable? Is it really that disturbing?
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