1. helmsleyl's Avatar
    it looks like the only way to get into "airplane mode" is to do "turn off all connections" from the connections screen. My question is that if I leave the GPS on, would that interfere with any operation of the flight???
    01-03-09 08:16 PM
  2. Sith_Apprentice's Avatar
    since some airlines are putting cell towers on their aircraft its really VERY unlikely that your phone does anything for the flight (in fact i know some pilots that leave theirs on, and have forgotten more than once to turn mine off). Its more of a politeness thing. Imagine a flight of 200+ people talking on their phones in a small metal tube
    01-03-09 08:18 PM
  3. GpCaptMandrake's Avatar
    Yep. The FAA (and their lawyers) are completely off base on this. I am a pilot and I *deliberately* leave my phone on every time I fly. Should the plane go down and my phone survive it's a beacon for search crews.

    A plane that can be brought down by a 300 milliwatt radio is a plane I'm not flying.
    01-03-09 08:33 PM
  4. lpda22's Avatar
    The MythBusters (Discovery Channel) tested this a while back. A cell phone radio will have no effect on a modern airplane. Lots of people "forget" to turn off their cell phones--and flying is still quite safe.
    01-03-09 08:56 PM
  5. pdt's Avatar
    Technically you're supposed to turn it completely off during takeoff and landing, so the GPS would be off also. (But like the previous commenters, I never do this.) But during the flight your GPS is a receiver and not a transmitter, so there is no chance of it having any effect on anything else. I say don't worry about it.
    01-03-09 09:58 PM
  6. jpg's Avatar
    My question is that if I leave the GPS on, would that interfere with any operation of the flight???
    a better question might be, why do you want gps while you're on a plane???
    01-03-09 10:17 PM
  7. obklxa's Avatar
    the phone companies also don't like using phones in planes because the phone can connect to multiple towers from a plane and are switching on and off of them quickly.
    01-03-09 10:19 PM
  8. CSSVT's Avatar
    I'd say about 50% of the phones on your average passenger jet are not turned off (figure ~300 seats, ~200 cellphones....almost def. more than 50 cells are left on). Turn off all connections for courtesy though...please....that means things that might cause it to ring in flight.
    01-03-09 10:27 PM
  9. Sith_Apprentice's Avatar
    Well its likely you wont get much, if any service in mid flight. however it will keep your battery from dying so rapidly searching for service.
    01-03-09 10:28 PM
  10. BBartist's Avatar
    the phone companies also don't like using phones in planes because the phone can connect to multiple towers from a plane and are switching on and off of them quickly.

    I have never gotten anything above NO SERVICE on a plane. Plus I have never heard a phone ring on a plane.
    01-03-09 10:57 PM
  11. asmallchild's Avatar
    I just turn the device off. No hassle with the connections menu. No hassle with flight crew wondering if my phone is off or not

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    01-03-09 11:11 PM
  12. bigman2's Avatar
    The odds of an individual cell phone causing any problems with a plane is very unlikely. It's ever so slightly more plausible that several cell phones would have a cumulative effect, but really all the electronics in an airplane should be shielded against common EMF radiation.

    Personally, I kind of like watching people squirm in their seats when they are suddenly cut off from their cell phones like that. I also like to see how many people in my viewing area pull out their cell phones the instant the wheels hit the runway. Not to mention how many of those people just HAVE to call someone to tell them they are taxiing in and give a blow by blow accounting. I'm both saddened and amused by this for different reasons.

    But I would say it is kind of a courtesy thing. Not everyone wants to hear you wax idiotic to one of your friends while they're kind of stuck in a seat and can't really go anywhere.
    01-04-09 12:00 AM
  13. helmsleyl's Avatar
    The reason I asked about just leaving the GPS on is because I can't turn GPS off from "turn all connections off," I need to go into option to turn that off and there isn't a shortcut for it.

    I was on a flight yesterday, I wanted to listen to songs I had on my Storm, but I dont remember the way to go into the GPS option to turn it off, so I just turned my phone off.

    I just want to make sure for my future flights.
    01-04-09 12:17 AM
  14. bigman2's Avatar
    If you turn off the cellular connection, it automatically disables the GPS as well. And unless you're running BB Maps or something, it wouldn't be transmitting anything anyway.
    01-04-09 12:41 AM
  15. bitkahuna's Avatar
    a gps RECEIVER doesn't transmit anything regardless. it's an ANTENNA. what you're "turning on" is a chip that interprets signals from multiple satellites and that takes some power. having gps on during flight is irrelevant.
    01-04-09 12:52 AM
  16. crackberry-fiend's Avatar
    LOL! "wax idiotic?" I love it!

    I'm getting really sick of people feeling the need to update somebody...anybody... about every minute detail of their lives while I'm forced to listen to it...


    The odds of an individual cell phone causing any problems with a plane is very unlikely. It's ever so slightly more plausible that several cell phones would have a cumulative effect, but really all the electronics in an airplane should be shielded against common EMF radiation.

    Personally, I kind of like watching people squirm in their seats when they are suddenly cut off from their cell phones like that. I also like to see how many people in my viewing area pull out their cell phones the instant the wheels hit the runway. Not to mention how many of those people just HAVE to call someone to tell them they are taxiing in and give a blow by blow accounting. I'm both saddened and amused by this for different reasons.

    But I would say it is kind of a courtesy thing. Not everyone wants to hear you wax idiotic to one of your friends while they're kind of stuck in a seat and can't really go anywhere.
    01-04-09 04:49 AM
  17. Advntrous1's Avatar
    it looks like the only way to get into "airplane mode" is to do "turn off all connections" from the connections screen. My question is that if I leave the GPS on, would that interfere with any operation of the flight???
    Actually there IS A REASON they do want the phones off..and there is good reason. As phones ty to switch or find towers the go from a low or high powered mode. A single pilots phone may or may not cause enough of a problem. But 200+ sure could. Not so much with the flight itself, but with communications. And where the plane instruments are shielded, their communications in the cockpit are not AS shielded.

    A great example is watch a tv set and have someone with a nextel stand next to it. Now call them.

    I have tested myself the effects of cell phones and flight (and if the faa is reading this...errrr.....it was in a basement with lead walls). True the plane flew fine.

    However, with the idea that communications could be missed while your doing 550mph through space, especially after 9/11 (we all know what lost communications could mean), really worth your call to someone to say "what's up" ?

    Besides, aren't crying babies enough of an annoyance?

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    Last edited by Advntrous1; 01-04-09 at 05:39 AM.
    01-04-09 05:36 AM
  18. man44a's Avatar
    On my last flight a few weeks ago, they announced all BB's and smartphones would need to stay off for the entire flight. They said "airplane safe mode" was not officially recognized by the FAA and was not allowed.

    They were asking people to turn them off so I couldn't use it for a music player.
    01-04-09 06:23 AM
  19. BorderBobNY's Avatar
    Reminds me of a scene in the "West Wing" where Toby (Tobie?) turned his BB on while in flight and the flight attendants were on him quick. He remarked about how this plane was some super modern type with GPS navigation and how he doubted it could be brought down by something "he bought at Radio Shack!!"

    b.b.
    01-04-09 06:35 AM
  20. Advntrous1's Avatar
    Reminds me of a scene in the "West Wing" where Toby (Tobie?) turned his BB on while in flight and the flight attendants were on him quick. He remarked about how this plane was some super modern type with GPS navigation and how he doubted it could be brought down by something "he bought at Radio Shack!!"

    b.b.
    I wouldn't use radio shack as an example. Some of our missile guidance systems were (and probably still are) made with parts from radio shack!

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    01-04-09 07:01 AM
  21. lindaruth's Avatar
    I have a Kindle app on my Storm which are really handy while on flight. Also a video app. The last time I flew, the flight attendant gave me permission to turn on my Storm to use those apps, though she didn't look very confident about it. She said if I don't use the internet, it would be ok. So I read my book on my phone, and the flight landed ok. Comments from the experts, please?
    06-15-10 10:49 AM
  22. gregs87's Avatar
    The reason I asked about just leaving the GPS on is because I can't turn GPS off from "turn all connections off," I need to go into option to turn that off and there isn't a shortcut for it.

    I was on a flight yesterday, I wanted to listen to songs I had on my Storm, but I dont remember the way to go into the GPS option to turn it off, so I just turned my phone off.

    I just want to make sure for my future flights.
    If you have the latest version of Quicklaunch you can set up a "GPS toggle switch" which will let you cut GPS on and off without have to go through the options.

    On planes I just turn off the radio and use the phone for movies and music.
    06-15-10 12:12 PM
  23. CharlesH's Avatar
    The prohibition about cell phone use on airborne aircraft comes from the FCC, not the FAA. The FCC is not concerned about interference with onboard systems; it is concerned about interference with ground cell systems, as the signal from the high cell phone simultaneously hits a multitude of cell sites. Besides, as many people have found out, you usually cannot get cell service from altitude, at least in part due to the antennas usually being pitched downward a bit, to help control the range of the signal. The FCC regulations apply to ANY airborne craft, even unpowered gliders and hot-air balloons.

    The FAA regulations in this area (which ARE concerned about interference with onboard systems), are left to the operator of the aircraft to specify. "Operator" meaning the carrier, not the pilot, for commercial aircraft.

    Here is a blurb from the FCC: Using Wireless Devices on Airplanes
    Last edited by CharlesH; 06-16-10 at 06:39 PM.
    06-16-10 06:29 PM
  24. rlmesq's Avatar
    Wow! Talk about thread necromancy.

    This one was dead for a year and a half before somebody resurrected it.... and as a newb first post at that!
    06-17-10 02:48 AM
  25. lindaruth's Avatar
    How do you "just turn off the radio?"
    06-17-10 12:17 PM
27 12
LINK TO POST COPIED TO CLIPBOARD