Windows Phone Thoughts: Cell-Phone Calls on Jets May Be OK'd by 2006

"Rapid changes in technology might mean that using cell phones during flight could be safe now. "It's been seven years since we last looked at this issue," FAA spokesman Les Dorr says. "That's like dog years, given the advances in technology." Cell-phone use aboard commercial planes in flight could be approved in about three years if a new study authorized by the Federal Aviation Administration shows that their transmissions don't threaten safety.

The study by the Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics, a non-profit advisory panel to the FAA, should be completed by October 2005. The RTCA panel includes representatives from airlines, airplane makers and the electronics industry. The FAA typically takes six months to a year to act on RTCA recommendations. The study also will look into what effects other portable communication devices, such as modem-equipped laptops and handheld computers and wireless messaging devices, have on aircraft equipment."

Quite frankly, I'm not sure I want to see this happen - I was looking forward to it until someone pointed out in an earlier thread how irritating it would be to have dozens of people around you screaming into a mobile phone. 8O Most people talk louder than they need to while on the phone, and quarters are already so cramped on a plane, this might be more trouble than it's worth. Now wireless data on a plane, there's something I can't wait to see! No, scratch that - first I want to see power jacks on every seat and every plane. There's no point in offering wireless data access if your device can't plug in on a long flight.