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Thread: Cell phone nonsense

  1. #1

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    Cell phone nonsense

    For 20 years or so, the airlines and the FAA have been telling people the fantasy that they had to turn off cell phones and I pods and the like when flying or even taxiing on airlines, for safety reasons.
    If you take a moment to think clearly about this, it is pretty obvious that this is nonsense which never had any basis in fact and certainly is not true now.

    It doesn't take much common sense to realize that if you really could make a plane crash or deviate from an ILS , just by turning on a small, common electrical device, then it would be pretty easy for a few terrorist passengers to take advantage of this. Never happened.
    And now not a week after American Airlines had actor Alec Baldwin denied a flight because of his device , their pilots were approved to use I pads in the cockpit; a lot closer to the nav radios than any passenger phone.


    Despite this, there are still a few people that are fearful of flying and will believe any ridiculous story they are fed, if it confirms their paranoia.

    Now it is announced that the FAA is "going to study the issue again".

    I don't think they like to admit they are wrong, as a matter of fact in 30 years of flying, I have only once heard an FAA guy admit that, and then it was only when I had the printed copy of an official NOTAM in my hand.

    Or I wouldn't be surprised if they come up with some supposed new justification that a cell phone can affect a plane.
    Last edited by Bill Greenwood; 08-27-2012 at 06:37 PM.

  2. #2
    Todd copeland's Avatar
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    And you can't use your cell phone while gassing up your car because it can cause an explosion.......

  3. #3
    kscessnadriver's Avatar
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    You do realize that the FCC is more behind it than the FAA. The system is not designed to be used at altitude, and massive use of such devices at altitude could cripple the system. Additionally, there is interference, as I've seen it 1st hand while flying.
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    CarlOrton's Avatar
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    Well, it really doesn't matter anyways. Just last week I was on a commercial flight and none of the folks next to me, across from me, or diagonal from me bothered turning them off. And they didn't put them on airplane mode either, cuz soon as we landed, they all came out and immediately made calls. I'm sure they were all RF avionic engineers who knew what they were doing. (sarcasm, if you didn't get it...)

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  5. #5

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    Why leave the cell phone switched on after take off anyway? As soon as it is out of range of a signal, it starts hunting for a signal & runs the battery down. I'd have thought that would be more annoying than having someone ask/tell you to switch it off?

    massive use of such devices at altitude could cripple the system
    How could there be "massive use" if all they are doing is searching for a signal? And if most folks are forgetting to switch their phones off, as often happens, why hasn't the system been crippled already?
    Last edited by Janet Davidson; 08-27-2012 at 08:24 PM.

  6. #6
    JimRice85's Avatar
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    I read something recently which said typically only about 20% of passengers actually turn their cellphones off. I only put my iPhone on Airplane Mode, despite stews (yeah, politically incorrect) say it must be turned completely off. I fly commercially several times each month and nothing bad had happened...yet.
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  7. #7

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    Good points Bill. The history that I recall was that a Sony Walkman tuned to certain FM freqs could harmonize with certain localizer freqs and cause full scale deflections of the CDI. I recall seeing some video confirming this. As of this date, all Walkmans are in museums. You get your tunes through other non interfering devices these days. I welcome the FAA doing more studies.

    The cell phone angst was that it would tie up entire area codes because every tower would respond to a single phone at altitude. Eventualy not proved. But wait, there's more:

    About 10 years ago, the baggage compartment FIRE WARNING lights of new aircraft employed new technology. The old technology was the same as home smoke detectors. Maintenance tested them with a cigar. Don't ask me to explain the new technology, I just flew them. When I checked out at Flight Safety in the latest variant of the Sikorsky 76, the Charlie plus, we were told of the new FW problem. Cell phones set off the alarm every time. MAKE SURE CELLS WERE TURNED OFF!

    When out of range of land based cell towers like 200 miles out in the Gulf of Mexico, A cell phone shifts to high power searching for a signal. The current fire detectors in the baggage compartment are sensitive to cell freqs and illuminates a big red light and horn. This brings the emergency check list into play and it says "land immediately." This requires landing back, searching all passengers, confiscating all cells and taking names. If you've gone through this drill a couple of times, You bear down on the passenger briefing real hard. This costs the client big $$$. A 76C+ ran $3,800 to $4,000/hr last I heard. More today. 15 minutes wasted in a turn around is not tolerated. All the legacy A/C have the old smoke detectors and work just fine. I don't know what Airbus and Boeing use. FAA must not trust the old stuff. Progress. Signs in the passenger terminal never truly explain this. Just banned the cells.

    If only they would let us fly with a horn blaring and a fire light blazing away.

    Bob

  8. #8

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    The odds of a cell phone interfering with avionics are pretty small, but it is a possibilty. I have an MP3 player that causes my portable GPS to lose its mind if they are both sitting in the passenger's seat... That caused an interesting moment when I was in the vicinity of a restricted area one upon a time.

  9. #9

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    Cessnadriver, Cell phones may cause some problem for the towers or for FAA, but that is not the warning given by the FAA and airlines.
    And I pads and Game boys etc, don't affect cell towers.
    I'd be wililig to bet you have never seen ANY interferance with airplane avionics like an ILS from a cell phone in the cockpit, and I'll bet $100 you can't demonstrate that.

    When all this baloney came out years ago, Aviation Consumer did a flight test using a Lear and with a number of passengers using phones in the cabin. They found no interference at all, they couldn't even make a needle budge.

    Kyle, no I don't think cell phones and the like have ever interfered with an avionics. Only possible about like Amelia flying at Osh next year.

    Furthermore if you have a handheld GPS, go fly an ILS approach on the panel and have a co pilot try to affect the needles with the handheld. Nothing will happen.
    Last edited by Bill Greenwood; 08-27-2012 at 10:08 PM.

  10. #10
    steveinindy's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by kscessnadriver View Post
    You do realize that the FCC is more behind it than the FAA. The system is not designed to be used at altitude, and massive use of such devices at altitude could cripple the system. Additionally, there is interference, as I've seen it 1st hand while flying.
    How dare you suggest the FAA is not to blame for all that ails us with regards to anything remotely involved with aircraft! [/sarcasm]

    You hit the nail on the head. The FCC has much more to do with this.
    Unfortunately in science what you believe is irrelevant.

    "I'm an old-fashioned Southern Gentleman. Which means I can be a cast-iron son-of-a-***** when I want to be."- Robert A. Heinlein.



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