Originally Posted by AA2070
Turn on your cellphone at 35,000 feet and see what kind of a signal you get. Remember, cell towers are now 7+ miles below you, and their antenna radiate in a plane paralell to the ground, not really straight up. Also, if you've ever looked out the window, you'll notice that you don't really ever fly over areas that are too populated - mostly just empty space. Not exactly a hotbed of cellular activity. For this to work, the wireless companies would have to install picocells onboard the aircraft - at least 3 different ones too - GSM, TDMA, and CDMA. Not going to happen anytime soon.
In case you didn't hear AA is testing a system NOW. It's promised for sometime in 2006.
Also read my previous post. The other 4 majors are already offering incoming calls to the Verizon Airphone through your mobile account at a very cheap rate.