Mobile Phone Use Backed on Planes in Europe

European regulators are currently calling for consultation on the potential introduction of technology that will allow passengers to use their mobile phones aboard aircraft in European airspace, possibly by as early as 2008.

Mobile use is currently prohibited on planes because there is evidence that they interfere with onboard communication and navigation systems; research published by the (UK) CAA in 2003 found that mobile phone signals skewed navigation bearing displays by up to five degrees.

Technology exists and is being developed that will permit use of mobile phones without risk to aircraft electronic systems.

If given the go ahead, a new service would allow calls to be made at altitudes above 10,000 ft and it would be up to individual airlines to decide if they wanted to introduce the technology.

A spokeswoman for Virgin Atlantic said they were monitoring customer demand to assess whether customers did want to use their phones, and said the airline was watching developments closely.

The European Union has recommended to member states that the plan go ahead and space on the airwaves has been reserved for the technology.

The system that is proposed will utilise a base station aboard the plane, which will communicate with passengers’ own handsets. The low-powered base station – called a pico cell – will create a network area big enough to encompass the cabin of the plane and will route phone traffic to a satellite, which is in turn will be connected to mobile networks on the ground.

A network control unit on the plane will block signals from the ground and will ensure that mobiles in the plane do not connect to any base stations on the ground.

The cost of making a mobile phone call from a plane will be higher than making one from the ground and calls will be billed through passengers’ mobile networks.

The current plan is for 2G phones only but UK company Ofcom said that if services proved successful, it could be rolled out to 3G and other standards in the future.

While European authorities are taking a scientifically-based objective approach to the use of mobile phones aboard passenger aircraft, aviation authorities in the United States have ruled out allowing mobile phones on planes for the “foreseeable future,” as a result of public opposition to perceived safety issues.