LatviaCalling
16th Dec 2004, 19:50
We have gone through this topic a number of times, but the US FAA is apparently going to ease some restrictions in some ways and some conditions. The following is a post from a IT forum in the U.S. which can explain it better than I:
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"Some of the distinctions of the fed alphabet soup are missing in the broadcast summaries of this story.
What is happening is that the Federal COMMUNICATIONS Commission .. which is studying advances in telcom technology .. is loosening its TECHNICAL ban on such RF transmissions aboard airplanes in flight.
"That does NOT mean that the Federal AVIATION Administration is loosening ITS restictions .. which are based on SAFETY concerns .. namely the possibility of RF interference with navigation and control gear. I'm not sure any such thing has been conclusively proven but nevertheless that's a pretty serious concern.
"The FAA will also take a look at this issue .. but it is not on the same track timewise as the FCC, so this is a couple of years off at bare minimum.
"For those wondering how a small handheld fast-moving phone, putting out a half watt or so, would hit a cell 30-thousand feet below ... it wouldn't.
"This innovation would require a different approach .. and a serious retrofit for planes that would offer it.
"The cellphones aboard the planes .. and possibly other wireless devices .. Blackberries, WiFi laptops etc .. would hit a cell within the plane itself ... which in turn would shoot a digital bitstream up to a satellite overhead for relay back to terra firma.
"In between the FAA safety issue .. and the costs of all this, it is NOT quite around the corner .. tho in the longer run it would seem to be technically feasible. I suspect it would carry a surcharge of some sort .. and might also call for the creation of "quiet sections" .. like some trains already have ... for sleepers and others to get away from it all."
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"Some of the distinctions of the fed alphabet soup are missing in the broadcast summaries of this story.
What is happening is that the Federal COMMUNICATIONS Commission .. which is studying advances in telcom technology .. is loosening its TECHNICAL ban on such RF transmissions aboard airplanes in flight.
"That does NOT mean that the Federal AVIATION Administration is loosening ITS restictions .. which are based on SAFETY concerns .. namely the possibility of RF interference with navigation and control gear. I'm not sure any such thing has been conclusively proven but nevertheless that's a pretty serious concern.
"The FAA will also take a look at this issue .. but it is not on the same track timewise as the FCC, so this is a couple of years off at bare minimum.
"For those wondering how a small handheld fast-moving phone, putting out a half watt or so, would hit a cell 30-thousand feet below ... it wouldn't.
"This innovation would require a different approach .. and a serious retrofit for planes that would offer it.
"The cellphones aboard the planes .. and possibly other wireless devices .. Blackberries, WiFi laptops etc .. would hit a cell within the plane itself ... which in turn would shoot a digital bitstream up to a satellite overhead for relay back to terra firma.
"In between the FAA safety issue .. and the costs of all this, it is NOT quite around the corner .. tho in the longer run it would seem to be technically feasible. I suspect it would carry a surcharge of some sort .. and might also call for the creation of "quiet sections" .. like some trains already have ... for sleepers and others to get away from it all."