Cell Phones

[Denny of Oakland]

Cell Phones
You may wonder why install an AirCell phone when you can use your trusty regular cell phone, after all it does seem to work at 10,000ft. Well, there’s this governing body called the FCC that would love to mail you a ticket for $5,000.00 for using your cell phone while airborne. What are the chances of getting caught you ask? I know of two guys who received fines from the FCC this year. If you are determined to use your cell phone illegally while airborne, don’t be dumb enough to mention in your conversation that you are "in the air". How is one to know if you are talking from an automobile or high in the aircraft? Easy, normally using your cell phone in the automobile the phone will hit only a few ground based cell sites but airborne that same phone would hit dozens of cell sites. When that happens, you stand a good chance of getting busted. The biggest plus of the AirCell 1000 is it’s legal to use and works much like a normal cell phone.
Section 91.21 of the FAA rules (14. C.F.R. 91.21) prohibits the use of (with some exceptions) portable electronic devices while on board U.S. registered civil aircraft operated by the holder of an air carrier operating certificate, or operating certificate, or any other aircraft operated under instrument flight rules. The FAA has issued an advisory circular offering information and guidance for assistance in compliance with Section 91.21. Reference http://wireless.fcc.gov/services/cel.../aircraft.html
FAA Position on PEDs/Cell Phones
“(Advisory Circular 91.21-1A) … prohibits the operation of PEDs (Personal Electronic Devices) aboard U.S.-registered civil aircraft allows for the operation of PEDs which the operator of the aircraft has determined will not interfere with the navigation or communication system of that aircraft …”

Reasoning behind the FCC Ruling Cell phones at altitude …Line-of-site communications to many cells Incompatible with ground frequency re-use pattern Causes interference with voice channels.

A British judge sentenced a 23-year-old man to four months in prison for playing a video game on his cell phone during a flight. Airlines ban the use of cell phones during flights because of concerns that the devices interfere with aircraft electronic systems. The young man, who had been asked three times to turn off the phone, was returning from his honeymoon in Egypt. The judge also recommended that cell phones be confiscated from passengers as they board aircraft.

Denny of Oakland

[BOHIXON]

Just some food for thought..

in the Aug. 2002 Cessna Pilot's assn. mag.

There is an interesting article, here are some of the highlights-

it talks about just what you said. States the actual CFR text and then goes on...

"Has there ever been any enforcement of this?"

"I had our attorney who scecializes in enforcement action with the FCC do a search on any fine resulting from violation of 22.925. Guess what, none."

They then go on to talk about what is and isn't cellular service.

"So what exactly is and is not cellular service?"

"Sec. 22.905 channels for cellular service defines the frequencies for cellular as roughly 824-894 Mhz. Note that this defines cellular, not PCS or SMR (think nextel) or trunked (450Mhz) phones any of many other cellular type of service. Most folks walk around with dual band tri-mode phones and really don't know or care it they are actually using 'cellular' frequencies. IF YOU ARE USING NEXTEL, THERE IS NO DOUBT YOU ARE OK because they use SMR frequencies. And you are ok using PCS PCS services are in the 1.8 Ghz band and are not cellular."

there is a lot more to the article. I just thought I'd throw that out there as some food for thought......

[Denny of Oakland]

Something I didn’t mention, which you nailed there has been no violations by the FCC. However, what I also did not mention was that on a lot of modern aircraft they have a data bus. And when a cell phone is turn on the signal is very weak, but when you plan a game, check messages, or talk on it the signal gets very strong and is absorbed into the aircraft data bus in some cases. What happen it creates a bad sector on the data bus, which tells the aircraft navigation computer what to do and when to do it.

The worst case I have read was a 737 crew flying IFR at night according to there instruments were lined up to land at an airport in the mid west. Then the pilot look out the window and did not see any runway lights and pulled up. He contacted the controller who told him his aircraft was 10 miles off course. The captain again check his instruments and was sure they were right had the flight attendants make sure all cell phones on the aircraft were turned off. The flight attendants found a lady talking on her phone when it was turned off the onboard computers cleared up the data bus error. This is one of several stories I have read and heard about.

This problem is worse on certain model aircraft than others and it depends where you are sitting when you use your cell phone. For example if you are sitting over the wing on some aircraft there is a data bus right below the floor. If you move five seats for or aft it will not effect the aircraft navigation systems.

Just a little more food to digest.

Denny of Oakland

[flaps22]

I'm sure with the constant upgrades being performed on aircraft nav systems, cell phones SHOULDN'T be a factor these days. The older 1st generation nav systems found on the older model 727s, 737s, L1011s, and so forth are more susceptible to interference by OLDER cell phones. The newer phones should not be too much of a problem, unless you have a plane full of people using their cell phones all at the same time. I can only imagine what a plane would look like after that. Imagine an eerie greenish glow around the plane as it lands. Happy flying!

[erauFLYER]

Any stories of small GA aircraft, such as Cessna 172's being affected by cellular phones?