Originally Posted by
sdix
Ok, so who doesn't put their phone into airplane mode on a flight? Well, me for one. I never do.
However I learned the hard way that Swiss and AT&T have a cellular roaming agreement.
BOS-ZRH last night, as we approach Zurich I get a text from AT&T saying I've got a $100 overage on Int'l data. Odd I thought since I have their $10 plan and I'm only just arriving in Europe.
Quick call to AT&T tells me that Swiss and Emirates have cellular service on board and thet I should have either read the notice on cellular or put my phone in airplane mode. Well, can't argue with the 2nd point but who reads every piece of paper in the seatback and certainly no PA announcement was made.
All those push notifications and automatic app updates sure add up!
Similar thing happens on certain ferry crossings between the UK and mainland Europe. While for several years you can use your home plan in any EU country to avoid racking up exorbitant roaming costs, some entrepreneurial people have set up non-EU antennae in international waters which phones automatically connect to and rack up massive $/MiB charges :/