Told To Turn Off All Electronics?
 

On a CRJ, a SkyWest FA announced that all electronic devices must be turned off when the door closed. She mentioned it again during taxi. And seconds after takeoff, she made an abrupt announcement "Turn off your electronic devices" with nothing else added.

Some passengers (including me) had our phones out most the time with headphones on. I was playing a puzzle game on my phone in airplane mode. I ignored her persistent requests to turn off electronics. I double-checked what Sky Magazine says about phones in case she rolled down to me during takeoff.

Does SkyWest have other clients that require electronics to be turned off and she maybe wasn't used to working Delta Connection flights that allow airplane mode? I didn't notice anyone talking on their phones and she never said anything about phones being in airplane mode. I can only infer that she wanted all electronics turned off, not just in airplane mode.

SkyWest operates as AA, AS, DL, UA - all allow electronics in airplane mode during taxi. All also say that you may sometimes (at the pilot's behest) need to fully power down.

Shame on you for questioning the Sky Goddess's instructions. I'll bet you were NRSA and giving us well behaved NRSA'a a bad reputation.

You are required to comply with crew member instructions. Refusing oor questioning at some point interferes with their crew responsibilities, which ends badly for the passenger.

In cases like this where unusual requests like this are made I would assume that the flight-deck crew made the request and had a very good reason for it.

Maybe it was a FA that was just doing the old fashioned everything off, or a cockpit crew that believes it will interfere, or.....


I would have turned mine off, and then politely asked the FA when the rule changed and see what she says.


Curious... did they EVER let you turn them on?

I never used to turn my phone off even when it was the rule. I wouldn't have in this case either.

Sometimes the FA are on auto-pilot and forget that times have changed. I have had FA mention Western Airlines which Delta bought decades ago!!

I probably would have politely rang my call button and asked. There may been a reason and if so it would really help for the FA to say "normally small electronics can be on but for this flight we request that they all be turned off" Done. Otherwise the FA may have done a mea-culpa.

If this was the case, then the flight attendant should have stated it. I would not assume it.

Although it is clear that it is a violation of law (criminal in some circumstances, merely an $11K fine in others) to disregard crewmember instructions, on this particular one, FAA went to even greater lengths.

When FAA authorized carriers to file plans permitting device usage, FAA expressly noted that at the Captain's discretion, all devices could be ordered to full off without any notice or explanation.

In certain instrument landings where the full capabilities of the aircraft are required, the engineers were unable to eliminate the risk of interference from devices. Thus, the specific rule and its reason.

It is beyond risky and frankly stupid to disregard the instruction. If the FA happened to slip into the old-fashioned mode, so what? If the FA did this intentionally and this was the flight which goes down in low visibility, that's something for the know-it-all's to think about.

BWAHAHAHA

Does anyone really believe that all phones are turned off? People stash them in their bags, or overhead bins and forget. Phones and other devices have been left on for years. Somehow planes have not been falling out of the sky.

My guess is that the FA has a bone to pick about pax not listening to safety presentation and is on a personal mission to correct this apparent injustice.

THe flawed logical progression:

"Phones are left on > planes don't crash > therefore, phones are safe"

has been refuted so many times on FT it deserves a sticky.

Which plane crashes were due to phones being left on?