Originally posted by Westcoaster:
Yikes! Sounds like a nightmare to me. On a recent 2.5 hour layover at LAX I ended up moving 3 times because someone would sit down next to me and start yelling into their cell phone for an extended period of time. And all I wanted to do was enjoy the latest Tom Clancy novel.
At least I could move.
Then, when I boarded my plane, the FA had to tell the loud guy in 3C to turn off his cell phone 3 times before the guy finally complied. I shudder to think what the flight would have been like if this guy could have continued his sales calls the entire time.
So even if the powers that be decide that cell phone use on a flight is OK safety-wise, I hope that the airlines I fly continue to ban it.
Just my opinion.
Westcoaster nails the essential point about cell phone useage
en route: cell users themsevles.
I can see why carriers might legitimately place a ban on cell phone use in flight. The sheer annoyance factor is incalcuable.
Think for a moment if cell phone use in flight was allowed. Airlines would instantly have two very vociferous factions of pax: those who want the right to yak on their phones incessantly and those who insist on the right to a quiet zone. I know of no current airliners set up to accommodate both types of pax. This is the real crux of the cell phone usage issue.
[This message has been edited by essxjay (edited 11-14-2000).]