Originally Posted by
go-around flap 15
For those wondering why phones have to be turned off:
Ever put a phone next to a speaker whilst its sending/receiving cellular data and been annoyed by the noise?
The aircraft PA/flight/service intercom system is quite sensitive to that exact interference. Trust me, we had it all through the taxi the other day!
Not ideal when trying to give a safety briefing.
Having been contracted by the CAA to carry out surveys on the RF field levels seen in the instrument bay and cockpit on a range of Boeing and Airbus planes I was surprised to note how little attenuation there was inside the plane. At the time, and this was before the advent of smart phones, the field levels developed exceeded the actual test levels that the plane sub assemblies had actually been tested to. I know that things have been tightened up since those days buy there are still older planes flying around.
I get very uncomfortable sitting next to passengers who refuse to turn their phones off or engage flight mode.