Airlines Come Clean on In-flight Mobile Phone Calls

A survey of international airlines carried out by Times Online Travel found that while five have taken the plunge, most carriers are taking the wait-and-see approach, with only one declaring an outright ban.

The five airlines that are either testing mobile phone usage onboard or have launched the service are Air France, Ryanair, bmi, SAS and Emirates.

A fifth airline, Qatar Airways, installed the technology across its fleet, but has since scrapped plans for in-flight mobile phone calls after research showed that 80 percent of customers do not want it.

The in-flight mobile phone developments come despite widespread resistance from travelers. According to one recent survey, 54 percent of people questioned were against allowing mobile phone use onboard.

The survey, carried out by Moneysupermarket.com, found that the top mobile phone annoyance was people who talk too loudly on the phone, something that would be amplified in the confines of an aircraft cabin.

If comments by Times Online readers are representative, the proportion of travelers against mobile phone calls in-flight far exceeds 54 percent, with most commentators objecting on the grounds of noise disruption and safety.