Comments on: Why are cell phones not allowed on airplanes?

By: ♥Gilmore♥

♥Gilmore♥ — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:50:56 +0000

I’m a commercial pilot by trade and was dubious about the effects of phones – studies here in Australia said this and that and never seemed to decide – although it was said often that GPS in particular can be effected.

So while the aircraft was serviced myself and a co-pilot tested phones in close quarters to the equipment…had interesting results.

Communications equipment is generally unaffected. This is because most Comms are on frequencies in the VHF and HF radio bands – far too low for mobile interference. Also, radio-signal navigation aids that provide distance and bearing were unaffected – they run in the VHF, MF bands and sometimes UHF.

However radar operates in the high end at SHF (super high frequency) and can be touched by phones interference at times – most planes have a "transponder" which sends a radar pulse when picked up by a radar scan – this pulse just gives a strong identifying "paint" on the screen as opposed to the weak return of basic radar. However this pulse can become confused and distorted by phones – we didn’t discover this but have seen studies in it.

GPS however has shocking effects. The GPS was set up with a north destination about 200 miles away programmed. On comes the phone – and the destination suddenly ended up south east approximately 75 miles away! Not nice!

Other jet systems such as INS (inertial navigation, which uses balanced gyros) won’t be affected though – they don’t rely on radio aids.

So yes…mobile or cell phones do have an effect and yes…they are allowed but generally banned.

I let people carry them on my flights but refuse to let them be turned on. No meeting is that important, sorry.

By: Ima girlie girl

Ima girlie girl — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:50:56 +0000

who knows?

By: cuti pie

cuti pie — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:50:56 +0000

because the signals to the satalite might mess up the airplanes satilite signals to klnow where to go and some flight might go to the wrong place that way.

By: ♥uR mY eVeRyThInG♥

♥uR mY eVeRyThInG♥ — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:50:56 +0000

some say it disrupts the engine or somting but i say its just plain weird

By: Lupin IV

Lupin IV — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:50:56 +0000

They supposedly screw up the delicate equipment in the plane. This is of course nonsense. Hospitals do the same. I think they just don’t want to tell people to keep it down.

Mythbusters tried to do a segment on this. For the most part they showed it was nonsense.

By: kluwe99

kluwe99 — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:50:56 +0000

The FAA has stated that it interferes with the planes navigational instruments and could cause them to give faulty readings, hence endangering the crew and passengers of the plane.

By: bluffmike

bluffmike — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:50:56 +0000

They just want you to rest your ratchet jaw for a few hours.

By: cluelessbtd

cluelessbtd — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:50:56 +0000

The signals from the cell phone can cause the airplane’s navigation system to go on the fritz..haha, fritz is a funny word

By: incognitte

incognitte — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:50:56 +0000

Although all the cell phones are FCC certified for unwanted out of band Radio Signal radiation, but there is a good chance that most of them actually do radiate unwanted signals. (You ask why? B/c FCC just checks one hand pick phone and grant the certification base on that, later on if the production phones fail nobody will check them and go to the market radiating unwanted signals.) These signals could interfere with the Airplane’s equipments and cause a fatal accident.

By: Ultramarine

Ultramarine — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:50:56 +0000

supposedly it messes up the radar and navigational stuff causing you to either fly into the ocean or fly to china when you’re actually wanting to go to america