docbert

All I can say is be thankful they don't....

Landed at IAH yesterday, and whilst we were taxing the guy 2 over from me decides he want to pre-order something from one of the restaurants in the terminal because he has a tight connection (ignoring the fact we landed 30 mins early, so it can't have been that tight).

I'm pretty sure everyone for roughly the 10 rows infront and behind us knew what he ordered. If he'd been only slightly louder he wouldn't have needed the phone as they would have been able to hear him in the terminal...

weltfrieden

Which restaurant at IAH allows passengers to pre-order food?
I may give it a try next time I fly there.

robroy90

How about don't be an a-hole and let your fellow traveller enjoy what little solitude they cling to in this world?

WillCAD

I think of this every time I hear someone screaming into their phone in public.

And every time a discussion comes up about using phones on planes. Sure, the vast majority of people would realize they're in a confined space and speak softly to prevent others from listening in on their conversations, but it only take one person out of ~150 to ruin a flight for the whole cabin.

"HELLO!? NO, I'M ON A PLANE!"

weltfrieden

"you're who? Noah? Anna Payne? I can't hear you...?
I don't want a free ADT home security system, stop calling me!"

stimpy

Well no, it doesn't ruin it for the whole cabin or even half, or even a quarter. There generally aren't that many self-entitled people on a plane who get upset at how people act around them. Most of us just ignore loud talkers, crying babies, etc. We have bigger fish to fry.

WillCAD

Being disturbed by loud noises made by other people in a tightly-crowded confined space does not make one self-entitled. It is a normal reaction by most human beings.

Dismissing other peoples' discomforts out of hand simply because you don't share them does, however, show a callous and selfish disregard for the comfort and safety of others. Such a person is, himself, likely to be one who causes disturbances out of an inflated sense of self-importance.

weltfrieden

this is why I want to have my own private jet...

I flew on my client's private jet across the Pacific a few years ago. What impressed me the most was how quiet the inside was. They must have used so much insulation or sound-deadening material, it was quieter than the new Lexus that I just bought doing 70mph. (but the jet was doing about 450 knots over the Pacific) It was so quiet that I thought I was wearing 31-db earplugs. the pilot told me that the cabin was tested to be under 48 decibels during crusing.... although I shouldn't have been surprised because the interior of the cabin alone cost over $27 million... plus the cost of the jet itself.

on the return flight, I was in the upper deck of a UA 747 and there were only 10 other passengers. Even when nobody was making any sounds, the 747's upper deck was still extremely noisy(again, compared directly to the private jet)

stimpy

Safety? Sorry but while you are entitled to your opinion, when you pull the safety card you end up with zero credibility.

WillCAD

I wasn't "pulling the safety card." I used the term "comfort and safety of others." I never claimed that being a noisy berk and having no consideration for the comfort of others also risks the safety of others; however, in my experience, those who care nothing for the comfort of others also care nothing for the safety of others. The "my phone call is more important than you" type is usually the type who makes those calls while behind the wheel of a car, and tries to take his mega-important laptop case with him on the slide in an emergency evacuation, shoulders "slow" people out of the way to get where they're going, bumps into other people as he walks, and a hundred other things that affect both the comfort and safety of others on a daily basis.

Consideration for others can't be neatly separated into "Well, screw their comfort, I'll do what I want, but I'd never do anything to risk someone's safety", because the "screw others" mentality consistently justifies safety risks in the same manner it justifies impacting the comfort of others - "I'm more important, it's not my fault they didn't get out of my way."

HDQDD

SMS is always over the internet between carriers.

stimpy

No, it isn't. SMS is carried over C7/SS7. Not the Internet.

aztimm

As far as I'm aware, any iPhone can use iMessage so long as there's an Internet connection. I know I've done it several times while on flights.
By the same token, someone could use WhatsApp or similar to essentially text through the Internet.

stimpy

iMessage and WhatsApp are IM applications that run over the Internet. SMS is a service that uses public telephone network signaling and has nothing to do with the Internet. Apparently both are allowed on cell phone equipped flights. And some airlines limit or try to limit cellular or Internet voice calls, while other airlines allow it.

gfunkdave

Friendly mod note to keep it friendly and civil, folks...