RyanAir – Inflight Mobile Phone Service

Sitting next to a passenger talking at full volume on their mobile and a bloody crying kid behind you…bring back the Ocean liners please!!!

The reason that you couldn’t turn them on above 10,000ft normally is because with no replacement network to select, they will just work harder to find a network and so continually emit higher radiative forces

I’m still yet to be convinced that a 1 watt transmitter can cause so much havok. In fact, the only explanation I’ve heard for mobile phones being a problem on flights (beyond the obvious aspects of your attention not being diverted elsewhere should something bad happen) is that they interfere with the crews headsets in the same way as if you put a phone on a guitar amplifier (which they would do). Considering the fact flights pass relatively close to transmitters such as Emley Moor (ERP 870,000 watts) and Crystal Palace (ERP 1,000,000 watts), I just can’t believe a tiny 1 watt transmitter would cause so many technical problems!

Paul

Well apparently there is no actual proof that the phones do indeed cause interuptions with aircraft instruments, that is not a quote from myself but from a 747 captain who was talking to Gerry Ryan, in Ireland on the extremely popular 2fm Ryanshow a few months ago.He said there was no proof and it was a precaution and gave the example of how a pilot lost control of his radio equipment and used his phone to get in touch with air traffic control who guided him in for a safe landing.Before people jump down my throats i am only recalling what i remember from the radio broadcast.

If you’re sitting on one of the planes and you don’t bother turning your phone off, do you get charged for incoming messages? And/Or does the sender have to pay a premium for sending the message to you?

I must admit, I’m a bit unsure where I stand on this one… which may come as a surprise to those on this forum who think I diss everything that Ryanair does! I can see the benefit… flight running later (oh, I forgot, Ryanair never run late, do they!) and you’ve got something important at destination – someone meeting you who isn’t in the terminal, a meeting to get to, etc – and a quick call will solve any problems (and one quick call won’t break the bank, even at 5p per second!). But as a regular long distance train user, I am certainly aware of how irritating someone shouting into their mobile can be – and its not the same as passengers sitting next to each other talking, because they typically talk at the minimum volume necessary whereas cell phone users tend to shout to the extent where they believe the person at the other end can hear.

I do actually question the viability of the service – if people are aware of the cost, I do wonder how many will use it for anything more than a few very short calls, particularly on such short flights. If it goes anything like Connexion (in-flight internet) did, it won’t last because people won’t pay the premium rates. Of course, I’d be willing to bet that if the idea fails it won’t have cost Ryanair anything – I suspect they’ll have got OnAir to pay for the kit on the aeroplanes and will just be taking a [significant] cut of any money made.

Andy

I for one would never make a call on one of their planes at that cost, although it wouldn’t particularly bother me if others were chatting away on their phones. Like someone said, it’s not as if everyone sits in silence on a plane, is it?

People chatting away on a phone on a Ryanair flight. Could be annoying i think, but not nearly as much as those bloody jingles they play while boarding. Noise cancelling headphones now become worth there weight in gold.

Were we not told a few months back that Ryanair fly a higher % biz type passengers then any other British based airline?

Perfect for those busy types of people.

I’ve just been on a day return to Dublin today from LBA and this new service was up and running! Didn’t seem to be many people making calls but many sent texts etc, it didn’t bother or annoy me as much as I thought it would have to be honest!!:p

I must admit that I’m not particularly bothered by this, it’s not as if people currently sit in absolute silence on planes at the moment.

Whilst that is true to a certain extent Ren Frew, surely the noise of calls, text messages/e-mails would surely get annoying…?

I think the costing of these calls will make it a case of “only when required” rarther than a scenario of people idly chatting away to pass the time…

Precisely…its the ‘when required’ that gets to me. What exactly do you need to tell someone in the air that you cant tell them just before you board the aircraft?:confused:

“Hello darling, I’m at 37,000ft above the Earth, flying at XYZmph, just crossing over the Bay of Biscay…what’s for dinner?”

I am amazed that we are we so relient on mobile phones these days that it has had to come to this?!

Also, it will be interesting to see exactly how much of the fees for using the service actually goes Ryanair’s way…I see this as nothing more than yet another way to fleece pax with exhorbitant charges for a service that people can live without for the relatively short duration of a flight!

Does anyone know if there are plans to roll this technology out on all aircraft, inc. long-haul flights?

I must admit that I’m not particularly bothered by this, it’s not as if people currently sit in absolute silence on planes at the moment. I think the costing of these calls will make it a case of “only when required” rarther than a scenario of people idly chatting away to pass the time…

They’re fitting an illuminated sign (as I understand it) whch highlights when phones should be turned off and on.[/QUOTE]

I flew with Ryanair a few weeks ago and noticed this sign and it got me thinking.1st time I have used them and the only draw back I had was that the flight operated łodż(PL) to East mids and the flight was 90% polish passengers yet they would’nt accept Polish Złotych for drinks.How much were they expecting to sell exactly when most of passengers had money albeit wrong currency to buy anything.

…similar to the seatbelt warning sign displays a red backlit mobile phone with a ‘traffic sign like’ red diagonal line across it when phones must be off, then a green backlit mobile phone appears when it’s permitted to use phones.

And I wonder how many people are going to abide by this; seeing as a large majority of people tend to release their seat belts and get up to go to the overhead lockers almost as soon as the plane has touched the ground when in fact they should wait until the aircraft has taxied to its designated gate and the seatbelt sign is turned off!

Flying was about the only place you could escape to where absolutley no-one could use a mobile phone…now all that it lost.

Does anyone know if there is going to be a rule in place whereby phones that are being used must be in silent mode during the flight; I am sure that I am not the only one that thinks that some people could get really wound up if the passenger sat next to them constantly has his/her phone going off, especially if it was on an overnight flight and I was trying to get some rest!:mad:

Or, indeed, why standing at the perimeter fence takin pictures of aircraft with my phone on doesn’t cause planes to come crashing down all around me…

The interference from your phone at a perimeter fence is not going to be a problem because it is not in close proximity to the aircraft’s own electrical systems, that only happens within the aircraft.

At altitude, as mobile phones try to connect with terrestrial network systems (i.e. from aerials on the ground, not satellites above) they will use more power and radiate more electrical (or micorwave, or whatever it is that interferes) forces as they struggle to find/keep in touch with the terrestrial systems and this increase in radiative forces is what can cause problems.

The onboard GSM system is in close proximity to the mobile phones and so the mobile phones only need a small amount of power to stay connected. My understanding is that the area between 0ft and 10,000ft would be an area in which mobile phones may still potentially pick up another preferred network, and would emit more power in trying to do so. Above 10,000ft it is probably accepted that they would give in and just choose the onboard GSM system. The reason that you couldn’t turn them on above 10,000ft normally is because with no replacement network to select, they will just work harder to find a network and so continually emit higher radiative forces, despite the fact they will not find a network.

I’m sure I’ve just confused you, but that is how I understand it.

…Or, indeed, why standing at the perimeter fence takin pictures of aircraft with my phone on doesn’t cause planes to come crashing down all around me…

How does your phone get onto these aircraft? :confused:

I think we should be told……

I am yet to fully understand why interference is more likely below 10,000 feet. Or, indeed, why standing at the perimeter fence takin pictures of aircraft with my phone on doesn’t cause planes to come crashing down all around me…

I can understand why they don’t want us using electronic items in general; it’s distracting and we need to be able to respond if they tell us we’re going to crash. But this doesn’t explain the potential for interference!

Yes you will, until the aircraft is above 10,000 feet the phone still needs to be turned off, just as phones with a flightsafe mode need to be turned off until the seatbelt sign is turned off. They’re fitting an illuminated sign (as I understand it) whch highlights when phones should be turned off and on.

They just featured it on BBC news, a lit sign on the cabin ceiling, similar to the seatbelt warning sign displays a red backlit mobile phone with a ‘traffic sign like’ red diagonal line across it when phones must be off, then a green backlit mobile phone appears when it’s permitted to use phones.

At least i won’t have to turn my phone off when i get on board anymore

Yes you will, until the aircraft is above 10,000 feet the phone still needs to be turned off, just as phones with a flightsafe mode need to be turned off until the seatbelt sign is turned off. They’re fitting an illuminated sign (as I understand it) whch highlights when phones should be turned off and on.

Blimey, it’s not exactly cheap is it ? 😮

Velcro?

What velcro?

Who said anything about velcro?

:diablo: