Mobile phone calls will be a common thing on planes

Jun 25, 2007 11:12 GMT  ·  By

If you believe airplanes are the place where you escape the buzz of the phone cells, you're wrong. Aircrafts will be connected through a new system permitting travelers to make mobile phone calls from the height of the skies. Currently, you are requested to switch off cell phones as a part of the takeoff routine, but a European company has encountered a method of turning dialing safe and connect with people even when they're above the clouds. "Cabin connectivity is here and GSM phone use is both a technical and commercial reality," chief commercial officer of OnAir, Graham Lake, told AFP.

OnAir has received the permission from the European Aviation Safety Agency to equip the commercial jets with the system. An Air France plane will use the technology for the first time in September 2007 before spreading it across the world, clients including low-cost operators Ireland-based Ryanair and Malaysia's AirAsia (for its new fleet of 150 Airbus A320s), British BMI and Portugal's TAP.

"It's the first time anywhere in the world that a system has been authorized and confirmed for the safe operation of phones and BlackBerry-type devices on aircraft. Approval from a handful of national telecommunication regulators are the final hurdles. What we are confident of now is that we'll have pan-European approval to operate before the end of 2007," said Lake.

Companies in SouthEast Asia and the Middle East will install the OnAir technology in 2008, while Japan and US will wait until 2009.

"We firmly believe that offering our clients the ability to communicate during flight is vital in this era of information technology," said Kamarudin Meranun, deputy chief executive of the AirAsia. Still, "the idea of mobile phones being used in the confined space of an airliner risks making talkative travelers a serious threat to peace. One wouldn't necessarily want to be sat next to someone who talked for the whole flight. But the cabin crew have control over the system. If an aircraft is flying overnight, they can decide to de-activate it for example. The service can be shut down to prevent calls, or partially de-activated to allow only text messages or BlackBerry use." sail Lake.

The new technology will be used only above 3,000 m (9,000 ft), four minutes after takeoff and kept until 10 minutes before landing. The price is $ 2.50 (1.9 euros)/minute for calls and about 50 cents per SMS message. The gaining will be shared between OnAir, the mobile phone operator, and the airline itself. Low-cost operators will be highly interested, as they rely on incomes from other sources than ticket sales. "We think it will be very popular with low-cost airline and the example of Ryanair taking the lead is very telling. What those airlines are looking for is ancillary revenues so they can drive their fares down and stay competitive." said Lake.

"There is a fine line to tread between offering the convenience of a mobile phone service and the inconvenience of the resulting noise. It offers potential ancillary revenues but on the other hand you have to balance this with the risk that it could annoy other travelers and could cause them to turn away from air travel," said Leigh Bailey, an aerospace analyst for ratings agency Standard and Poor's.

The high-altitude telecom equipment will turn phone calls on planes highly common, as another 2-3 operators are developing the technology.