http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/dang...nding-13799400
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Every now and then this topic comes up for discussion again on a particular website, and I'm always amused by all the armchair electrical engineers that come out of the woodwork, with their Faraday cage this and RF leakage that. Even CNN recently ran an article on this.
The arguments go back and forth and always end up involving the entire spectrum of electronic devices (including pacemakers, how ridiculous).
I hope someone figures it out one way or another before something terrible has to happen because of someone using their phone in the lav. Which I'm sure happens on a regular basis.
On a related note, a couple of years ago I was coming up from San Antonio on Southwest and had turned my phone off prior to takeoff. Not even 'airplane mode', it was TURNED OFF. Halfway through the flight I took the phone out of my pocket to get to my wallet only to see the outer screen illuminated. I opened the phone and saw the message "attempting to connect to network", it was some message I'd never seen before. I basically tore the battery out of the damn thing I was so pissed. Anything like that ever happen to anyone else?
just a couple more facts. I see TONS of people NEVER turn off their cell phones, laptops, iPads, Nintendos etc. etc. It is simply impossible to control it and keep the plane on time!
Secondly, the Faraday cage thing is real and not at the same time... it depends on the frequencies as far as a plane's design is concerned.
On an A320, I can assure you it is well protected from outside :cool: as I always bring my scanner with me on most flights. I can ONLY hear the pilot on my plane and even that is weak. Even on Virgin America A320, sitting right under the tower, could not hear anything else.
Yet my cell phone worked perfectly up until I was told to shut it off. This has been my typical experience.
On a 747, the opposite was true. Scanner worked fairly well, cell phone, not so much.
B777 (KLM) NOTHING worked... I mean I couldn't even hear the pilot... the AT&T cell phone had one bar before the main cabin door closed and then it was like a perfect Faraday cage.. nada!
Finally, I have been guilty of leaving my iPad on the overhead and not remembering to turn it off and not even made time to put it on airplane mode (which only turns off the radios)
I'd say the most signal leakage was the old iDEN network Blackberry Nextel push to talk phones. OMG those things could make speakers vibrate from 10 feet away!