sbm12

Yes, there were. Many years ago when the FARs were drafted they were done with the concept of "unless otherwise permitted." This essentially means that everything is prohibited unless a specific study is conducted and a specific exception (STC) is issued. It prevents the aircraft manufacturers from having to conduct significant amounts of testing for FAA certifications, even if they already know that there likely is no impact on the flight systems. We've already seen this happen several times for in-flight WiFi providers, for example.

And outside of the USA we've seen commercial carriers implement GSM transponders in their planes, essentially demonstrating that it is possible to operate such devices on airplanes in a licensed manner and not have planes falling out of the skies.

stimpy

For the US, it originally it was an FCC regulation intended to protect the old AT&T AMPS network from fast moving cell phones. There was no FAA regulation against cell phones on airplanes. Somehow, through fear, uncertainty and doubt (FUD), it because a widespread belief that cell phones were banned for safety reasons. Then it became a rule in each airline's regulations which were filed with the FAA. Only recently did it become an actual FAA regulation.

So it is a law that was based on an outdated technical issue on the ground, then morphed into a law based on FUD. That is why most people do not respect it. Thou shalt not steal or murder, etc., we all agree with. But you won't find thou shalt not communicate in any moral code.

mre5765

I'm not completely sure, but given that one pilot managed to pull off what I thought was impossible, I tend to think that with enough time in the simulator, the success rate of ditching would improve. Pilots do train for lots of other mishaps, and the success rate shows.
No analogy at all, because your cell phone being on isn't going to do anything to imperil a landing.
I don't. If the fasten belt light is on, and if I don't have it on during turbulence, then I am endangering fellow pax and me. That would be selfish.

nmenaker

EXCESSIVE speeding or speeding in a compromised location causes accidents, but the EVIDENCE of the past 15 years shows that increasing speeds from 55-70/75 in some states has not led to an increase and that actually during this most recent 10 year period both ACCIDENTS and FATALITIES were down. Many states are now looking at increasing speeds to 70mph on highways.

planemechanic

From what I have read it is not the actual speed that is the problem, it is the variation in speeds between vehicles that is the real issue. We could all go 80 mph and be safe, but if half the cars are doing 70 and the rest doing 55 then you will have more accidents.

nmenaker

Must be the former then, since we have less accidents, injuries and fatalities

stimpy

Well there are statistics and there is reality. You can examine countless accident reports that make it clear that if the driver was going a bit slower, no one would have died. There are thousands upon thousands of examples where speeding has cost lives. Yet you are ok with speeding, which is demonstrated to kill, but against using a cell phone on a plane which has never killed.

RhoadWarrior

I'm one of the first guys to complain about stupid rules and laws - but I'm also old enough now to understand stupid isn't always as stupid as *I* think.

I'm an Amateur Radio ("ham") radio operator, and there is absolutely potential for interference. There are many documented cases where some guy's portable home phone is broken and sends out beacons that interfere with ham radio communications for many miles. Equipment malfunctions and sh*t happens. Radio waves travel in all directions and there are many, many variables.

A flight with 200 people has probably something like 190 cell phones on it! Do I think the next aviation disaster is going to be caused by one or two people that accidentally or intentionally left their cell phones turned on? No. But seriously, is it worth taking the risk? It's not just about you. There are 199 other passengers and crew. There is no reason your cell phones need to be on during takeoff and landing so we should be responsible and respect the flight crew. They have enough to deal with. We are frequent fliers and should set the example.

And on that note - please turn off your engine when pumping gas. I see this frequently and feel it's dangerous.

pushback

I too am a ham (KB6___). I am also a commercial pilot. I too agree there is no danger of interference to the aircraft instrumentation. That said, a flying cell phone moves along, line of site, with 20-30-100 cell sites instead of the usual 2-3-4-5 cell sites when they are on the ground can wreak havoc with the cellular network. It's my understanding that the FCC (not FAA) requirement exists to protect the cellular providers and is the penalty you pay for them implementing a poor design.

Our government is at work protecting the interests of the public companies so they (the cell companies) can go on to charge you up the wazoo for sending text messages or going over your plan's airtime allotment. Your tax dollars at work. Business as usual.

neuf

To be a little fair, like you pointed out the air bandwidth used by a phone in the air is significantly massive-..er () than one on the ground. I.e. a TDMA phone might take up 5MHz bandwidth, and with a couple cell sites that's no big deal, but when you have a single device talking to tens of towers, that really screws up the utilization estimates of the cell company. (Yes the system is oversold, no, they don't make it public, and yes, many general network access sellers oversell (internet, cell, ...))

Using your numbers the number of towers having to keep track of the cell phone increases to a minimum of 400% (5 towers to 20) to a maximum of 5,000% (2 towers to 100). Granted that last situation is unlikely but...

TMOliver

Now, when it come to lght that it's cellphones causing all those Toyotas to go haywire, aren't some of you going to have egg on your face.

The FAA will go bonkers and the TSA constabulary will have you checking your cellphones, devices and laptops 'at the door', just like the sheriffs making the drovers check their guns when coming into town for a night at the saloon.

Tyzing

Fly private and see how many times they ask you to turn off your device. It wont happen...simply because...it doesnt matter any more (with today's technology and frequencies)

N965VJ

Keep in mind if that it is easier for the PIC of a private aircraft to determine what might be causing harmful interference, in many cases this is done by looking back over their shoulder and saying "Hey, turn that off.."