[325ci_freak]

Do you need to turn off the entire BB unit or can you just turn off the wireless?

[bfrye]

I usually forget and never turn anything off. Never heard anyone complain yet..

[vpalmeri]

This may sound insane, but i can not find where i start a new thread on this site. I have a few questions and would love to get some input on it.

thanks so much in advance,

Vera

[PhilMax]

Go into the appropriate forum, for example this one, the Blackberry General Forum, and just to the left of "Currently Active Users" is an option to start a New Topic.

[vpalmeri]

thanks so much for your help.

[FlemmingRiis]

You need to go into flight mode aka turn radio off.

Most airlines have a list of certified devices they will allow to operate in radio off mode, but most dont enforce anything unless you are active talking on the device

[jibi]

...not to mention the idea that your phone would cause interference is bollocks, in my opinion.

the FAA *believes* (note: this is a keyword to pay attention to) cell signals to possibly interfere with airline navigational equipment - this has never been proven.

the FCC bans them due to the distance between the airplane flying how many ever thousands of feet above the cell towers it would have to reach - this has been proven to cause issues on the cellular networks.

more info: http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/cellonplanes.html

[harleyxlc]

This is discussed in great detail by smartphone users. More times than not I was asked to put away my pda, even if the phone portion was turned off.

It is hit and miss and arguing with flight crew is never a good idea

[geekman686]

Especially nowadays, arguing with the flight crew gets you thrown into jail....

I heard that the airlines don't want you to use your own cellphone/BB since they get a cut of the air phones service fees.

[mrogers]

The interference thing is total BS now, in fact within two years some major airlines are going to have cell phone repeaters installed that will allow you to use your cell phone in the air (I personally have mixed feelings on that--I don't want to be stuck next to someone yammering away for hours on end). They're doing that because they now KNOW that cell phones can't interfere with flight equipment. Flight attendants telling you to put them away are just holdovers from an era when cell phone technology was so new it was better to be safe than sorry.

[TRaymond]

Originally Posted by jibi

...not to mention the idea that your phone would cause interference is bollocks, in my opinion.

I agree. Somehow I can't quite figure out how a 12.00 transister radio can bring a 747 crashing out of the sky.

----------
TRaymond

[jibi]

there's a lot of *beliefs* about cell interference. heck, i think that there are some concerns that could be warranted. just the other day, someone asked about the interference they notice with speakers, monitors, etc. EMI is an unexplained thing that just happens (unless someone has been able to prove why it happens, despite it not supposed to happen).

however, as far as airlines are concerned, its crap. prove it. they have proven that cell phones can interfere with equipment at hospitals and other medical facilities. the FAA has never once proven that cell signals can interfere with navigational equipment. i think there was more to it than a general concern over new technology (at the time the laws were made, it was new, to an extent)... and if it was just a general concern back then, it should have been done away with sometime in the last 5 years.

[NJBlackBerry]

Our Corporate Aviation department still likes to carry the old 950/957 units, since they work in the air while they are flying the corporate aircraft. SO I guess the BBs must not be too much of a risk if a really risk averse group (corporate pilots) use them in the air.

Of course, most BBs won't work once you take off, so it doesn't really matter.

Wonder what the airlines are going to say once WiFi starts to appear on aircraft. "Our wireless is OK, your's is not?".

[dancingbear]

Why is it that the BB will work one mile from the tower (horizontally) but will not work at 5000' AGL???

Trying to use it while on appr or dep seems silly.

DB

[penguin3107]

Originally Posted by dancingbear

Why is it that the BB will work one mile from the tower (horizontally) but will not work at 5000' AGL???

Trying to use it while on appr or dep seems silly.

DB

You woke up a thread that's been dead for a year and half to ask this?

[dancingbear]

Let's see:
Newbie Question... check
related to Airplanes... check
Blackberry service and tech stinks... check

[bostonnerd]

Originally Posted by dancingbear

Let's see:
Newbie Question... check
related to Airplanes... check
Blackberry service and tech stinks... check

Cells phones xmit/receive via vertically polorized signals. Because of this they are relatively narrowly focused via line of sight along the horizon. As there is no sense with cell phones to radiate upwards from the transmitter, there isn't going to be much signal at 5000' AGL.

Versus horizontal polorization used with your aircraft VHF and SW (aka ARINC over water) transmissions.

[rambo47]

Holy crap! I don't even know what you just said but I'm copying it down to save it anyway. I simply HAVE to whip this out on somebody some day!

[NJBlackBerry]

The exception to that excellent response is the towers for the old 950/957 BlackBerrys (the Mobitex network) do point upwards also; that's why our corporate pilots like to keep a few 957s around. Since they work in the aircraft.

[sbaska]

Originally Posted by jibi

however, as far as airlines are concerned, its crap. prove it. they have proven that cell phones can interfere with equipment at hospitals and other medical facilities. the FAA has never once proven that cell signals can interfere with navigational equipment. i think there was more to it than a general concern over new technology (at the time the laws were made, it was new, to an extent)... and if it was just a general concern back then, it should have been done away with sometime in the last 5 years.

Mythbusters actually did a show about this one. they proved that it actually does interfere with the guages they use for landing, but it wasnt enough to cause anybody with any kind of flight experience to miss their landing target. which is probably why the airlines ask you nicely to turn off your phones instead of demanding it.
who gets service at 35,000 ft anyways?