Do you turn off phone on a flight because you are told to?

Do you turn off phone on a flight because you are told to?

Author
Discussion

Trustmeimadoctor

10,229 posts

142 months

Wednesday
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Flight mode on then re enable WiFi (if flight has it) and Bluetooth otherwise I can't use my headphones

It's perfectly safe

Lord Marylebone

17,110 posts

167 months

Wednesday
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On the subject of 'interfering with the plane electronics', I remember in the late 90's we were on a family flight to NYC, and about 1 hour into the flight my brother got his Sony Discman out of his bag, but his headphones on and started listing to a CD. within about 1 minute, a flight attendant came walking briskly down the isle asking if anyone had just turned an electronic device on. My brother put his hand up, and she came over and asked him to turn it off, as the pilots had alerted her to the fact that something had started causing interference to their instruments. He obviously turned it off straight away and that was the problem solved.

I would be interested in the technical reasons of why that caused an issue, but it clearly did.

As for the phone thing, yes, I always do as instructed whether it be off or in flight mode, because that is simply the polite and respectful thing to do. If you fly on someones aircraft you abide by their rules and regulations. You don't sit there thinking they don't apply to you and ignore them. Thats my personal view and way of behaving, others may feel differently.

Saweep

6,281 posts

173 months

Wednesday
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On Emirates flights you can use your phone whilst flying...I'm not sure how it works but you can.


//j17

4,150 posts

210 months

Wednesday
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GT03ROB said:
If you ever do an autoland though the pilots are very pedantic about reminding your to switch everything off.
Yep, I've had one very rough flight where pre-landing we had the "switch off" command from the flight deck, an instruction I found really simple to comply with - but the cabin crew who then went through the plane checking found at least one person in each row who had ignored it.

Can't remember if it was an especially fun landing at London City or the really stormy evening I took off from Edinburgh, flew down to Birmingham way, circled above Birmingham for an hour or so, then flew back to Edinburgh as it was the closes open airport nobody had declared a low fuel 'pan' at.

ruwokeenuff

11 posts

Wednesday
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arfur said:
ChocolateFrog said:
I've done the helicopter escape training where they roll it over and dunk it in water. Even though you're all fit 20 somethings and as prepared as you'll ever be it's still pretty scary and confusing.
Same here, years ago when I worked for oil co. Needed to go to rigs so had to do the training

I pretty much shat myself !
What.....Did the dunker at HMS Dolphin and thought it was a laugh, like a wet fairground ride.

Tim330

1,023 posts

199 months

Wednesday
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Lord Marylebone said:
On the subject of 'interfering with the plane electronics', I remember in the late 90's we were on a family flight to NYC, and about 1 hour into the flight my brother got his Sony Discman out of his bag, but his headphones on and started listing to a CD. within about 1 minute, a flight attendant came walking briskly down the isle asking if anyone had just turned an electronic device on. My brother put his hand up, and she came over and asked him to turn it off, as the pilots had alerted her to the fact that something had started causing interference to their instruments. He obviously turned it off straight away and that was the problem solved.

I would be interested in the technical reasons of why that caused an issue, but it clearly did.

As for the phone thing, yes, I always do as instructed whether it be off or in flight mode, because that is simply the polite and respectful thing to do. If you fly on someones aircraft you abide by their rules and regulations. You don't sit there thinking they don't apply to you and ignore them. Thats my personal view and way of behaving, others may feel differently.
Could be the magnetic field from the motor in close proximity to a sensitive cable running behind a panel. If he was in a window seat with the discman next to the fuselage.

JEA1K

2,339 posts

210 months

Wednesday
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Yes more often than not ... but if there was a genuine safety issue, phones would be confiscated upon boarding. People cannot be trusted ... I would make a guess that more than 50% of people on flights either don't bother or forget.

I'm more concerned for my safety from other passengers excessive alcohol intake and those that sneak a toot of their vape stick.e cigerette.

Saweep

6,281 posts

173 months

Wednesday
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JEA1K said:
I'm more concerned for my safety from other passengers excessive alcohol intake and those that sneak a toot of their vape stick.e cigerette.
It's quite open in Emirates First.

As long as the doors are closed nobody seems to care. I see Emiratis vaping away pretty much non stop for the entire flight; having said that, the crew are terrified of them so it might not be as easy for you or I (assuming you aren't an Emirati).

RDMcG

18,435 posts

194 months

Wednesday
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I just turn it off . No idea why this would be an issue. I fly a lot and I expect that any danger is very unlikely indeed , but no particular need to keep it in and it is zero trouble.

Petrus1983

7,721 posts

149 months

Wednesday
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Saweep said:
On Emirates flights you can use your phone whilst flying...I'm not sure how it works but you can.
WiFi is pretty standard on flights these days - I try and avoid flights that don’t have WiFi as I find I can get a lot of work done up there.

HTP99

20,967 posts

127 months

Wednesday
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ChocolateFrog said:
Nah not usually unless long haul.

You think if there was a risk they'd let you board with one in your possession.

Laughable.
Pretty much this, if it was an actual problem there would be methods in place to make sure all phones where off and safely secured away from the owner.

What The Deuces

1,853 posts

11 months

Wednesday
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The last plane I caught had free wifi so I dont think it was strictly necessary to turn off my phone lol

FYI for pedants wanting to check it was Austrian Airlines LHR to VIE

Saweep

6,281 posts

173 months

Wednesday
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Petrus1983 said:
Saweep said:
On Emirates flights you can use your phone whilst flying...I'm not sure how it works but you can.
WiFi is pretty standard on flights these days - I try and avoid flights that don’t have WiFi as I find I can get a lot of work done up there.
I don't know how it works...I presumed it was different to wifi calls. Could be wrong though!

ecs

1,113 posts

157 months

Wednesday
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Saweep said:
Petrus1983 said:
Saweep said:
On Emirates flights you can use your phone whilst flying...I'm not sure how it works but you can.
WiFi is pretty standard on flights these days - I try and avoid flights that don’t have WiFi as I find I can get a lot of work done up there.
I don't know how it works...I presumed it was different to wifi calls. Could be wrong though!
Some flights offer AeroMobile which uses a cellular connection (in addition to wifi).

Antony Moxey

7,292 posts

206 months

Wednesday
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Lord Marylebone said:
On the subject of 'interfering with the plane electronics', I remember in the late 90's we were on a family flight to NYC, and about 1 hour into the flight my brother got his Sony Discman out of his bag, but his headphones on and started listing to a CD. within about 1 minute, a flight attendant came walking briskly down the isle asking if anyone had just turned an electronic device on. My brother put his hand up, and she came over and asked him to turn it off, as the pilots had alerted her to the fact that something had started causing interference to their instruments. He obviously turned it off straight away and that was the problem solved.

I would be interested in the technical reasons of why that caused an issue, but it clearly did.
Assuming it was him of course, and not someone else that didn't own up but switched their device off before they got into trouble.

peter tdci

1,611 posts

137 months

Wednesday
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GT03ROB said:
If you ever do an autoland though the pilots are very pedantic about reminding your to switch everything off.
I flew into Heathrow in January when it was covered in fog (great views of the city with tall building poking out of the blanket of fog). The captain announced two or three times that it was going to be an autoland and that we HAD to turn all electronic devices off - the cabin crew came around as well. It was a very smooth landing and the captain complimented the aircraft on it later!

Griffith4ever

2,508 posts

22 months

Wednesday
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ChocolateFrog said:
Griffith4ever said:
My only real concern is I want the people in my exit route to be aware of where they are going , which they miss if they are on their phones during the safety briefing.
I'm certain that would be an absolute st show regardless.

People with mobility issues, small children, the selfish and the ignorant, people collecting their hand luggage etc etc.
You are not wrong. There was an incident a few years ago , emergency slide out, fire/smoke in the cabin. Filmed. People were getting their overhead luggage before leaving.......

I read an article by an air incident specialist years ago and his advice to survive a crash/fire - was "get out as fast as humanly possible, and if anyone is not moving fast enoug/blocking you then climb over them - do it, or you WILL die if there is a fire". Sure enough I read an account from a girl on the budget airline Thailand runway crash a few years ago (hard landing, plane split, fire in cabin). She faught through the smoke to the exit door, a hand reached back in and pulled her out. As she looked back the people behind her were on fire.... Never has GTFO(out) been so true.

Countdown

36,396 posts

183 months

Wednesday
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Bill said:
Pitre said:
Always goes off/flight mode.

It would be interesting to know whether it's still an issue, but I thought a large number of phones 'on' may interfere with the plane's communications systems...
+1 I have no idea whether the risk is real or theoretical but figure it's no bother. I suspect if anything it's older phones that might be an issue but they go with a blanket ban as that's simplest.

Same here.

My kids sometimes want to play games or watch stuff on theirs but I tell them to put it into Airplane mode.

snuffy

8,351 posts

271 months

Wednesday
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ChocolateFrog said:
Nah not usually unless long haul.

You think if there was a risk they'd let you board with one in your possession.

Laughable.
Indeed. The same utter bks about your phone causing an explosion at a petrol station.

It's never happened because it's impossible. If it could, it would have happened by now. Same with phones on planes.

snuffy

8,351 posts

271 months

Wednesday
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arfur said:
ChocolateFrog said:
I've done the helicopter escape training where they roll it over and dunk it in water. Even though you're all fit 20 somethings and as prepared as you'll ever be it's still pretty scary and confusing.
Same here, years ago when I worked for oil co. Needed to go to rigs so had to do the training

I pretty much shat myself !
When I did mine, I got stuck and couldn't get the belt undone. 2 divers arrived to get me out and they couldn't get the belt undone either. That's when they hit the tit which lifts the while thing out of the water in a couple of seconds.

You do feel a bit of a knob, dangling upside down from your seat when everyone else is sitting on the side of the tank looking at you!