Cell phones really do cause interference on airplanes
By Virginia SmithJune 10th, 2011, 9:50 amComments (8)
Well, now I feel like a jerk. Apparently the rules I've been sort of ignoring for years on airplanes are actually there for a reason, and a recent industry study determined that cell phones and electronic devices can cause serious problems.
The International Air Traffic association has documented seventy-five cases of possible electronic interference, one of which actually caused the autopilot on a plane to disengage at 4,500 feet. So yeah, pretty horrifying. Do you think this will scare airline passengers straight, or is texting and listening to music while the plane takes off still just way too appealing to let go of?
Commentarium (8 Comments)
The study says the exact opposite of your headline, specifically:
"The report, which stresses that it is not verifying that the incidents were caused by PEDs, includes a sampling of the narratives provided by pilots and crewmembers who believed they were experiencing electronic interference."
Airplane computers, like all other computers, sometime have glitches. Unless you can repeatedly cause the autopilot to have the same glitch when you turn on three ipods and a noise-canceling headphone, you can't say that one causes the other. And by the way, there is nothing "terrifying" about the autopilot turning itself off. It's pretty much a non-event, especially when, like here, it gave the proper indications to the pilots and they immediately took over.
Or even take over not so immediately; if the aircraft was properly trimmed, an autopilot disconnect is, as you say, a non-event.
I hate hating on more than one Hooksexup news article a day, but I don't know any airline pilot who uses airplane mode or turns their phone off. I've only worked in the industry for a mere 3 years, but turning their phone off just isn't smart.
As a former airline pilot who now works as an aeronautical engineer, I can tell you that these "cases" are extremely suspect. The only documented case I observed in thousands of hours in the cockpit was occassionally annoying audio buzz on the ICS.
As for such a system causing an autopilot disconnect, it's unlikely. Consider that aircraft frequently fly in close proximity to lightning and taxi near high power radars located on the surface of many airports.
Like Lawrence says, it's interesting that pilots are not particularly diligent about turning off their personal cell phones when flying - I can recall dozens of flights when texts and voice mails would come up during descent to landing.
There has been virtually no in-depth research regarding interference of this type. One of the main reasons is that technical experts completely discount the likelihood of harmful interference.
My favorite was during an FAA line check when the CA's phone started ringing as we were taxiing onto the active runway. All three of us laughed and we took off....
...or is it simply an industry-wide conspiracy to get people to pay attention during the in-flight safety demonstration?
Have a hot girl do the demo and you have half the plane's attention.
Air New Zealand actually tried that. (https://goo.gl/RC2Gx)