FAA Warns Guy Who Filmed Birds Striking Plane Engine
from the seems-sort-of-besides-the-point dept
You may recall a few weeks back that a Delta 757 leaving JFK on its way to LAX hit some birds on takeoff, damaging an engine, and requiring a quick turnaround back to JFK. The story got more interesting when it was revealed that one of the passengers on board just happened to be recording video out the window as the birds hit:Of course, then the story went from interesting to silly, when the FAA decided that this YouTube video was evidence of wrongdoing and that it needed to "do something." At least they decided that the extent of "doing something" would be to just send the passenger a warning letter, telling him that he was supposed to have all electronic devices turned off during takeoff, and that the letter would be the extent of their actions (though they mention that they could take legal action). The letter does say that it will remain on file for two years, after which it will be dumped.
The passenger, Grant Cardone, points out that this is all pretty ridiculous:
"To think that a device, a telephone or this iPad can take down a plane is ridiculous, because figure 90% of all people in America now have an iPhone on them," Cardone said. "Nineteen percent of all people have a tablet of some sort. If only 10% of passengers on that plane had their device in the on position, thousands of planes would fall out of the sky every day."
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Filed Under: airplane, bird strike, faa, grant cardone, ipad
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This myth was busted.
http://dsc.discovery.com/fansites/mythbusters/db/transportation/cell-phones-interfere-plane -instruments.html
Nuff' said.
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Re: This myth was busted.
...'cause they don't allow that anymore either.
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Re: This myth was busted.
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Re: This myth was busted.
Cell phones generally don't have enough power to hold a connection at 6 miles from any cell tower, and that's not considering all the attenuation from being inside an aluminium can.
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Re: Re: This myth was busted.
Now, if the window was lined with metallic mesh (like the windows of MRI magnet rooms), you would get massive attenuation.
Also, most cell phones have problems because of the land. When you're in the air like that, there aren't many trees etc to get in your way. The thinner atmosphere also makes it easier for the signals to propagate.
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Re: Re: Re: This myth was busted.
so the plane is 6 miles up, but you also have to take into account the angle of the phone/window to towers, so most likely a minimum of 8-10 miles, and no, modern normal handset phones dont work at those ranges from my exp even when in direct line of site of a tower, older analog phones in some cases could and suitcase style phone today MAY(very hit and miss).
in the past when the rules where made, it was not done to protect planes or cell networks, it was to protect profits from airline controlled in fight phones, phones you rarely if ever see on domestic fights anymore.
this case is silly, its just somebody deciding that somebody had to do something......kinda like at my last major job when we would get memo's telling us to do things XX way, then a few days later we would be told not to do it XX way, and so on, we all just kept doing things the way we always did them(you know the efficient way that worked) but somebody was doing something.....lol (all got worse when some moron cut off the end of his pinkey with a hot cable saw....idiot...)
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Re: Re: This myth was busted.
If so, you are wrong. I had one of those old Motorola flip phones in 1993 and made an in-flight call about 2 weeks before the ban was announced. Reception was perfect.
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No! Because I use common sense, and stay in my seats pretty much the whole time, most times even with my seatbelt on, even if the sign says that it's safe for me to remove the belt.
Also quite a leap to go to: "people not paying attention are the ones that get tossed around the cabin"
What about people who've flown for years, they can recite it better than the flight attendants can.
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Re: Re: Re: This myth was busted.
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Re: Re: Re: This myth was busted.
> to pay attention to what's going on during
> takeoff and landing.
Even if that's the reason, these rules still make no logical sense.
On one flight, I was told I couldn't even hold my iPad on my lap. It had to be 'stowed' because-- according to the skywaitress-- it could become a dangerous missile in the event of turbulence.
I pointedly looked at the guy sitting next to me, who was holding a handcover book on his lap, twice the size and weight of my iPad, and which presumably could become an even more dangerous ballistic object, and after a moment of awkward silence in which she realized how little sense the 'rule' made, she shrugged her shoulders and said, "I don't know what to tell you. The rule says electronics can't be held on the lap for safety reasons. It says nothing about books. I don't make the rules, I just enforce them."
Wonderful. So basically we have the airplane equivalent of "But it's on the internet!", where there's a whole different and idiotic set of rules for things merely because "They're new-fangled gizmos and they must be dangerous or something!"
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Re: Re: This myth was busted.
> fiddling with even more things, and not
> paying attention to what's going on, during
> a complex part of the flight.
So why don't they ban people from reading books and magazines, or talking to their friend in the seat next to them, or shutting their eyes and snoozing during takeoff and landing?
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Re: This myth was busted.
This is out of date and inaccurate.
1. BOTH the FCC and the FAA have banned the use of cell phones. Claiming it was one, but not the other, is false.
2. This "problem" was solved years ago with a simple solution: the pico cell (basically a cell tower attached to the plane that takes all the calls and routes them down to the ground.). This is already how most planes that have internet access work.
So, no, that's not a problem any more.
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Re: Re: This myth was busted.
If you really want to dig in to the details look too the ieee.org report on the whole process.
http://spectrum.ieee.org/aerospace/aviation/unsafe-at-any-airspeed/0
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Re: Re: Re: This myth was busted.
1. Between 1-4 cell phone calls are made per flight.
2. NASA has an ASRS database listing all incidents reported on flights. It suggests that as many as 23 incidents are due to PED interference each year.
3. Extrapolating from that, PED interference is a factor in an accident every 12 years. (More/legal electronic use would increase the risk of interference and accidents).
4. Samsung SPH-N300 cellphones had caused pilots' GPS receivers to lose satellite lock, according to NASA.
5. FCC regulations don't match FAA regulations, so electronics can legally interfere with aviation equipment (the Samsung's RF was within FCC's legal limits for interference in the GPS range).
6. They've found multiple devices stack on each other such that they cause interference together, but not separately.
This all makes me think that testing definitely needs to be done, and the current testing rules are kinda dumb. Really, instead of one unmanned flight for each device, they need to have flights with as many different devices as possible. (I think that these flights should be manned by volunteers who get that flight at half regular price to help pay for the tests).
Also, why on earth do they not have devices tracking these emissions on airplanes yet? IEEE put one in a carry-on bag, for Christ's sake.
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I leave my laptop on and ready
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Re: I leave my laptop on and ready
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I'll never fly again with this blatant disregard to my safety.
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New hardware found: Boeing 737
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Re: New hardware found: Boeing 737
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Re: New hardware found: Boeing 737
./boeing-737-cockpit --do-barrel-roll
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I once flew with Iberia
Next to me was a couple entertaining their (sick) baby with a DVD player, on the other side of the aisle a guy was talking on his phone, we were still standing still on the tarmac (and would remain so for about 1.5 hours), but I, and I alone, got told off "Sir, you mustn't use electronic devices until after we've taken off".
Lesson: The stewards and stewardesses have some weird ideas what constitutes an electronic device, and which might cause some interference. And besides the whole "you mustn't use electronic devices" is plain bullshit.
Why would it be bad on the ground, but be perfectly okay during the flight?!
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Re: I once flew with Iberia
Their idea of extra legroom is to put you behind a solid wall, without a place to put your feet.
Their idea of customer service on an 9.5 hour flight (including the 1.5 hrs spent waiting for the plane to take off) was 2 small glasses of water, and a particularly bad meal.
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I don't really care what the FAA/FCC has to say about it, the fact is there is absolutely no reason why you can have your smaller electronic devices on when your in the air but not during takeoff/landing. That said, I can understand not allowing a laptop or DVD player, if something did go wrong that would be a heavy flying object unlike a small MP3 player, Smartphone or lightweight Tablet.
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Re: I don't really care what the FAA/FCC has to say...
The reason you don't care is because you are ignorant of the effects your "little device" can have. That's all. Personally I hope your plane crashes some day and you're the one arse-hat that actually gets hurt. Then, I hope they trace the incident to your "little device" and you get sued for hundreds of thousands of dollars.
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> laptop or DVD player, if something did go
> wrong that would be a heavy flying object
> unlike a small MP3 player, Smartphone or
> lightweight Tablet.
And yet, they'll let you hold a big ol' hardcover book during takeoff and landing, which would just as dangerous if it flew about the cabin.
It's some kind of bizarre technophobic panic over new things that results in just this kind of bizarre anti-logic.
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distraction
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Re: distraction
Not only is it because of the distraction, cellular signals can also cause speakers on headsets to cause interference. Ever been on a regular land-line and have your cell go looking for a tower/signal? That's what pilots can hear if everyone's got their phone on in the plane. They could miss crucial routing information on the tarmack, which could actually cost you your life.
So, because 9 out of 10 folks have no idea how to put a phone into "Airplane mode" or a need to have email on their phone, they blanket statement it and have everyone turn their devices off.
When I see jerks that continue listening to their iPod or play games on their phone during take-off and landing it makes me want to smash their skulls into the ground for being such douchebags. Really? You can't wait the 10 - 20 minutes and disconnect for a second and pay attention?? Not only are you being disrespectful to the crew, but you're being a douche to everyone else around you that IS obeying the LAW.
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Re: Re: distraction
I rather hope you are trying to be sarcastic/ironic with this claim.
Otherwise the post-911 Soviet/KGB mentality has started to sink in just a little too much.
That's what KGB translates to BTW: "Homeland Security".
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Re: Re: distraction
Stop posting.
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Re: Re: distraction
After I reached that point myself (50+ flights in less than a year), I now continue to listen to music on my iPod (and yes, my iPod is in airplane mode... all the time actually, it greatly extends the battery life).
Having said that, I make sure to be buckled in with all loose objects secured, seat in proper position, my ipod volume level is low enough that I can hear cabin communication, etc etc. I would not trust most people's judgements though.
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Perhaps it's not a right, but even more than that, it's about the opposite of a luxury, particularly post-9/11.
Rather, it's horrible experience sometimes bordering on unmitigated hell that I only do when I am forced to.
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Re: Re: distraction
> If someone tells you to DO something, especially when it is
> only a PRIVILEGE, you do it. It's not a RIGHT to fly a
> plane. It is a luxury and privilege just like driving. Such
> a sense of entitlement nowadays...
Wrong... while it is true government petty-tyrant-wanna-be's willl tell you that 'driving is a privilege', the courts have consistently ruled the opposite... traveling, including by horse or whatever is the current/popular mode of travel at the time (and yes, decisions have specifically included automobiles), is a RIGHT, NOT a privilege.
Same goes for flying.
Please stop being such a sheeple, peeple...
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Since you're not expected to personally pilot the plane yourself, the same should apply.
Booyah!
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> is the current/popular mode of travel
> at the time (and yes, decisions have
> specifically included automobiles), is
> a RIGHT, NOT a privilege. Same goes for
> flying.
The difference is that the car is generally yours. The plane is not.
You don't have a right to drive in *my* car, nor do you have a right to fly in someone else's plane. If you do, you have to abide by their rules.
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Re: Re: distraction
The FAA though is a different story. They should only be dealing with real issues.
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Re: Re: distraction
I love how the government managed to take something that's nearly essential in modern life and define it as a 'privilege' which can be revoked at its whim and everyone just accepts it and says 'Hear, hear!' like that's the most sensible thing in the world.
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Re: distraction
Selfish is making me get to the airport 2 hours early so that I can sit on the tarmac for 3 hours before a 2 hour flight.
Selfish is not returning to the gate to let people eat/drink/stretch/bathroom when you know you're going to be sitting on the tarmac for 3 hours.
Given the constant barrage of ignorant and useless shit that modern air travelers are subjected to, I find it rather selfish that me watching a movie on my phone is what you think is wrong with the system.
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At least now the wings do not flap like a bird.
The wings on a DC-3 would flap up and down 3 to 4 foot.
Nor, do the engines make the exhaust noise that the DC-3 did.
On the other hand I miss just driving up to the plane in the car and boarding much as you can still do at county airports today. Then again it did take 2 days to cross the country (west to east).
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Re: distraction
The issue is how over the top the rules are. No matter how much you moan no one will respect them until they are less insulting to the average persons intelligence.
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I hope to god you're lying about being a pilot. I wouldn't even want you serving me fries.
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See how stupid that sounds now?
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Re: distraction
Before you start railing against the people who pay to have you cart them around, please look into your colleagues who act like jackasses and endanger more people than my MP3 player.
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Re: distraction
All of those things fit the situations you're talking about. Hardbound books can become projectiles in the cabin and hurt someone during a rough landing/takeoff, same with kids toys. Reading during takeoff and landing is a distraction. Deaf people are only aware of problems if they keep their eyes open. All of these things are true, but only electronics are banned. Your points are invalid.
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Re: distraction
True, and the same applies to every other thing not bolted down (much of which is supplied by the airline), and yet you want to apply the rule just to electronic devices. That makes no sense.
"There are still rules and laws in the world."
And when rules and laws are based on proven lies ("your electronic device will cause the plane to crash!"), respect for those rules and laws disappears. If you want people to follow them, tell the truth. Don't make up plausible but flawed reasons.
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Re: distraction
If that were true then sleeping would be banned. But it's not. Also people are free to read a book.
These objects are also a serious danger, no matter how small, if they are flying around the cabin. You've all seen video of people getting launched out of their seats and getting slammed into the cabin ceiling then back to the floor. Small objects can seriously injure someone.
And yet equally (perhaps more) dangerous books and other toys are allowed. As are all the things in the plane galley which can fly around.
Sorry, but your explanation doesn't pass the reality test.
I'm sick and tired of the me me me attitude people have these days. You do not have a right to do whatever you want wherever you want. There are still rules and laws in the world. Grow up and think about the overall picture not just your momentary selfish needs. That third star on Angry Birds can wait.
I'm sick and tired of the "respect my authoritah!" attitude people have these days. Just because there are rules it does not mean they are right or make sense. Your ego can settle down.
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Re: Re: distraction
If you don't respect their authoritah, who will? How will they keep control of their sad little fiefdoms? Without those, they'll have to go home and beat their wives (or husbands, I'll be equal opportunity here) to feel like a big person. By submitting, you're keeping domestic abuse down.
Are you saying you are in favor of domestic abuse?
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Re: distraction
I've never heard a solid reason stated ever. None of the reasons you've stated in your post pass the laugh test.
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Re: distraction
> matter how small, if they are flying around
> the cabin. You've all seen video of people
> getting launched out of their seats and getting
> slammed into the cabin ceiling then back to
> the floor. Small objects can seriously injure
> someone. I'm sick and tired of the me me me
> attitude people have these days
Then make the rules make sense.
Don't tell me I can't have my iPad in my lap because it could be dangerous, but let the guy next to me read his hardcover book the entire time.
All that tells me is that either the rule is nonsense or you don't know how to enforce it properly, and either way it doesn't motivate me to take you seriously.
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> surrender all electronic devices with
> battery/batteries removed at boarding.
That's gonna really help dad with listening to the safety briefing if his hearing aid is surrendered.
And I'm not sure how grandma's gonna be able to surrender that pacemaker and still, you know, live.
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Re: distraction
It's ironic every time someone complains about selfishness in rants that are inherently self-serving. It really wasn't necessary to ruin an otherwise excellent post with this was it?
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If anyone disagrees with my statement, please provide evidence, in any form, of any airliner incident in which it was even suspected that electronic interference from inside the plane caused a problem.
There is no such evidence.
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All of those things fit the situations you're talking about. Hardbound books can become projectiles in the cabin and hurt someone during a rough landing/takeoff, same with kids toys. Reading during takeoff and landing is a distraction. Deaf people are only aware of problems if they keep their eyes open. All of these things are true, but only electronics are banned. Your points are invalid.
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If it's about distraction, then why the hell does the guy next to me get to read his non-electronic book when I'm asked to turn something "off" that essentially is never "on" ?? The answer is it isn't about distraction. If it were about distraction the safety briefing would ask passengers to remain aware and alert during takeoff and landing, to keep the window shades up, etc... They don't ask this (though I do recall them asking to keep the shades up during taxiing before, but not lately).
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In theory, the only way RF inside the average commercial airliner could bring cause a crash is if GPS were disabled, the landing strip were fogged in, and you were using the same frequency as those old landing approach systems. Outside of that, the pilots human eyeballs can substitute very well for landing.
Keep in mind that regardless of whatever happens to the planes electronic systems, the Jet engines are impervious to ALL RF. You'll always have thrust and flight surface control, so you can always just land using your brain.
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Might as well start pirating software right? It's against the law, but you're not hurting anyone, right? But you see how it's affecting the music/software/game industry. They're locking things down even further.
Quit trying to be smarter than the system and follow the damn rules. Once you're in a position of authority to make the judgement call to remove the rules, then be my guest. Or for that matter, start a petition to the FAA about relaxing the rules and do a smart write-up as you sound like you're smart guy.
But, as far as your respect towards the flight rules concerned, I hope the Air Marshall stun guns your butt the next time you don't follow the rules and you get thrown out of the plane for not following them. Maybe with the new laws in effect they might just throw you into a Detention Camp without a warrant or phone call to your lawyer.
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How cute.
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Thoreau said "Law never made men a whit more just; and, by means of their respect for it, even the well-disposed are daily made the agents of injustice." Authority doesn't make someone right and just. Just because someone is in charge and making rules does not give them some mandate of heaven. Many times it just leads to them making up arbitrary rules to show that they are, indeed, the boss. It is even sneakier when old rules are still enforced that should no longer apply.
Actually, most places are opening up DRM. iTunes is DRM-free and so is Amazon for their MP3s and have been for a while. I don't know how in the hell you have decided that reading a book on a device that is not broadcasting is equivalent to copyright infringement and honestly I can live the rest of my life without knowing where to board that particular train of thought.
I will not follow rules that make no sense. I have no respect for rules that cannot be explained. "Because I said so" is not a good reason, ever. However, even if I disagree with a well reasoned argument I will listen to it and try to change it. Anything less than a well reasoned argument for a rule is just tyranny, no matter how small and pathetic the tyrant's kingdom is.
Really? You hope someone will do physical harm to me because I want to read or listen to music on a device that is less of a projectile danger than a hardback book, and is broadcasting just as much? You advocate indefinite detention without trial for U.S. citizens? That says something for how you feel about authority. I am a citizen of the United States. No king rules me. No religious figure tells me how I will live my daily life. I will applaud the rules that make sense (don't go around hurting or killing people who aren't trying to hurt or kill you first!) and I will actively work to change the rules that I don't believe make sense. I will not, however, blindly submit to authority, no matter how big or small they might be, just because they are the ones in charge. I will be a rational, thinking, caring, open minded person. I will not expect others to agree with me "because I said so", just as I will not agree with others "because they said so".
It is my sincerest hope that no one ever comes after you with a stun-gun over the mildest form of disobedience. I hope you are never pepper sprayed for disagreeing with authority. I hope you are never beaten within an inch of your life because you hold an opinion contrary to the rule-makers and rule-enforcers. However, if all you can add is "You were told to do it, so sit down and shut up" then please know that I have heard you and have disregarded what you have to say in its entirety. Everything else that you say along those lines will be treated like the dreck that it is.
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Sorry, couldn't resist !
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Then why are airline profits down?
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No, it must be the recession. It couldn't possibly be arbitrary rules and morons with a little dick complex causing people to spend their money elsewhere.
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Posting is a privilege. Please stop posting. You've been asked, so now you should do it according to your own moral values, stated in a previous post.
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The iPad was the problem!
/sarcasm
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Authority Figure: "Do this because if you don't, bad things can happen"
Citizens: "Uh, there's no evidence that bad things have ever happened as a result."
Authority Figure: "Do this because it's a personal safety issue if you don't"
Citizens: "That safety issue already existed because there are no rules for non-electronics."
Authority Figure: "Do this because I said so."
Citizens: "Frack you."
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If you don't like the regulation, get it changed rather then act as a self entitled brat who thinks they know better on the basis or hearsay and anecdotal evidence.
Some people dislike wearing seatbelts in cars. If you don't do it, you'll still get fined no matter how much you argue that you didn't wear it all year and didn't get injured once.
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Re: Re:
It's the difference between being told there's a regulation that says, "Don't do what you want to do because here's the evidence of the benefit," and, "Don't do what you want to do because, well, we said so."
Ethically made laws and regulations are not made in a vacuum, you need solid empirical evidence of a need to situationally constrain human behavior or you're no better than a dictator. This is why the original bill of rights only constrains what laws congress may make, not what U.S. citizens can do.
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Re: Re:
I follow the rules scrupulously. The rules are based on worse evidence than provided by those who oppose them.
How can "We the people" change these rules? "We the people" are not allowed to vote on regulations.
Please tell me how I could get this stupidity changed. Please ...(times 3)
Please also stop using the word "brat" for people who disagree with you. I'm not sure if it makes you sound more like a fascist, or just stupid when talking about air travelers, of which the vast majority are adults. Yes some adults are brats, but most people rejecting the TSA mindset and standards are thinking adults.
I'm guessing you don't do much thinking. See ... ad-homs are easy.
Car seat belts are a really bad argument as
1) those are state laws (constitution much?)
2) Lots of US citizens oppose those laws.
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So that's why we are all treated like terrorists
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semi-kudos to FAA
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one time
If phones could crash planes, wouldn't terrorists just bring a bunch of phones onto a plane?
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Right vs Wrong
You know, as an IT guy I don't agree with the rules either. They don't make sense, the IRS, DHS and TSA doesn't make sense. But, you know what... I follow the rules anyways. Do you know why? Because it is out of respect to others who follow the rules.
Personally, the flight attendants have to deal with enough dirtbags and senses of entitlement all day, that I really don't care to make their day any worse.
For those talking about the whole business aspect, that I don't know how it works. Cool... stop flying then. Drive. Don't take a ship to other countries either, because you probably won't follow the in-cruise emergency muster briefing's anyways. So, drive/swim your happy ass to wherever you want to go. Other people will continue to fly/cruise, and will continue to observe these "obsolete" rules.
Just because you fly 50+ times a year doesn't give you any seniority privilege of being able to ignore rules. Become a pilot and fly your own plane if you want that. You're no better than anyone else on the plane that just wants a peaceful flight experience and a flight attendant that's in a good mood. Because if the attendant has to deal with someone that's not willing to follow the rules, guess what... s/he's not going to be in a good mood.
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Re: Right vs Wrong
Stop posting.
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Re: Right vs Wrong
Same here. I still follow the rules, even though they may seem injust and rather arbitrary.
But does that mean I can't talk about it?
Does that mean that we can't have a discussion about it?
If we all just shut up and did nothing about any of the rules that don't make sense, nothing would ever get changed, in fact the rules would become even weirder/stricter.
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Re: Right vs Wrong
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Re: Re: Right vs Wrong
No I'm not saying that by using an ipad on an airplane, makes people the next Rosa Parks, I'm just highlighting the stupidity that was sniperdoc's statement.
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Re: Re: Re: Right vs Wrong
It won't help. Once someone realizes they're stupid they do one of two things. They post louder, more insulting arguments thinking that makes them look like they know what they're talking about (the little dick complex) or they run away without admitting they were made to look like a jackass.
You can lead a person to the well of knowledge but you can't make them think.
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Re: Right vs Wrong
I know! It's incredible! People are being told to sit on the back of the bus, and they won't do it! What kind of entitled world we live in, where people that get told to sit on the back of the bus are disobedient little brats and instead sit on the front of the bus.
If you don't want to sit on the back of the bus, change the laws that say that you have to sit on the back of the bus! Don't just go and sit on the front on the bus all defiant-like! We're the bosses over here! I hope the next time you refuse to sit on the back of the bus, Pepper Spray cop empties his entire canister of pepper spray down your throat, and that you get sent to Gitmo, while a dozen crack dealers burn your testicles (or other genitalia) with their crack pipes, while Mr. Pilot Dave shoots you with his taser gun and vultures remove your eyes from your sockets!
If you don't go and sit on the back of the bus right now, I'm going to not be in such a good mood. It's very important that I'm in a good mood, okay? Respect my authoritah!
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Maybe the FAA should send the bird a threatening letter!
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Occupy Airplanes
Let's pick a day - May Day would have been a good choice in hindsight - that we the people can designate FAA Electronic Testing Day.
On that day as many people as possible will keep all their electronics on for the entire duration of each flight they are on. No airplane mode silliness.
We will then tally up all the airline crashes for that day and begin the investigation from there.
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Re: Occupy Airplanes
Fill the cup.
Count the number of fish in the cup.
Empty the cup and repeat 5 times.
Chances are you found 0 fish.
Therefor, we can state that the ocean has no fish in it.
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Some people find wearing seatbelts silly.
Some people think some of the drug prohibitions are silly.
Some people find the music/movie/game piracy silly.
Bottom line, if you think it's silly, get the law changed so it's not silly. Otherwise, stop being a person who thinks they know better and are above the law. That's the same sort of self entitlement attitude that is annoying on so many other levels.
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Sure you saw a person use a phone and the plane didn't crash. I'm sure you also had first hand knowledge of everything that happened in the cockpit. Maybe the shielding or signal error correction filtered out any of the electromagnetic radiation coming out of that 1 device. What happens when everyone on board all have devices running? What if a normal operating device is fine, but one that had a component fail and release some unexpected signals on a different frequency? How do you know that the device that is on is working within normal parameters? How about the fact you should be paying attention to the safety instruction given by the crew, rather then trying to get your new high score on Angry Birds.
I'm assuming the FCC, FAA, or any of the other alphabet agencies would have performed some actual scientific study on the effects. Perhaps not, but rather then just ignoring them on the basis that you think you know more then them, maybe you should present an argument with non anecdotal evidence, preferably a creditable scientific study, that proves their concerns are unfounded and they should consider allowing electronic devices to be operated during takeoff/landings.
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Re:
Newsflash: we can still discuss the silliness of the law while still obeying it.
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Re:
How many trials have been conducted by people keeping devices on and using them on how many flights over the last year?
Millions would seem to be a conservative estimate.
Number of planes brought down by electronics? Zero.
If that's not a thorough scientific study with conclusive results I don't know what is.
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Re:
How many trials have been conducted by people keeping devices on and using them on how many flights over the last year?
Millions would seem to be a conservative estimate.
Number of planes brought down by electronics? Zero.
If that's not a thorough scientific study with conclusive results I don't know what is.
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Re:
> the law changed so it's not silly.
Sound advice if we weren't stuck in a system where only those who contribute millions to politicians are listened to.
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Seriously?
The answer lies not in interference to the aircraft, but disruption of the cell phone infrastructure by high altitude cell phones being able to hit hundreds of towers at the same time and the infrastructure was not designed to handle the massive overload that would cause almost every cell tower to be active at the same time.
They could solve the problem by telling us the truth instead of a blatant lie, thinking nobody knows the difference.
Maybe someone should challenge the law by using their phone and claiming an attempt to bring the plane down. At the trial, just challenge the science behind the law.
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Not sure...
Camera however, i don't get, unless of course it's on your phone.
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Why the law is the way it is
"Understand one thing about the FAA: If they repeal the current rule, and a plane crashes, there will be hell to pay. If they leave it on the books, the only downside will be complaints from a relatively small number of passengers who dislike the inconvenience of turning off their laptops or smartphones for 10 minutes. I’m sure you can guess how that choice will be resolved by an agency."
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