Flying Solo…But not For Long
Following two years of research and thousands of consumer comments, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) announced this week that it will maintain its ban on the use of cell phones in-flight. The ban has been in effect since 1991.
In contrast to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), whose ban on cell phone use is based on a fear of interference with mission-critical navigational and communications systems, the FCC’s concern is interference with cell phone signals on the ground.
The seatback phones we’ve all grown accustomed to use a special FCC frequency that operates outside the range of regular cellular phones, circumnavigating the interference concerns voiced by the two agencies.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a fan of allowing cell phone use on airplanes. Let’s face it – who wants to hear, “no, I love you more honey bun,” or, “dude, I’m flying over the Grand Canyon right now – it’s so cool!” during a 5-hour flight across the country? 
But as today’s consumer grows more accustomed to constant connectivity, the FCC and FAA are going to have to find a solution to satisfy travelers’ needs (desires really). Think about how much more productive you would be on that cross-country flight with access to the outside world – it could change business travelers’ outlook on flying, and perhaps, business altogether.
So what’s next?
Onboard broadband connections are scheduled to debut as early as next year using cabin Wi-Fi hotspots according to the FCC. Simultaneous to its investigation of in-flight cell phone use, the FCC began the process to wirelessly connect travelers to the Web.
According to CNET, a spokesman for AirCell, the Colorado firm that received an FCC license last year enabling it to set up hot spots on aircraft, confirmed Tuesday that the company still plans to begin offering its exclusive service to passengers by early 2008.
AirCell says customers can expect connection speeds on par with those on ground, and that access for a day will cost $10.
Fliers taking advantage of onboard Internet access may not be able to conduct VoIP calls, however, as that would still require the blessing of both the FCC and FAA.
For now, the cell-phone issue is closed as far as the FCC is concerned, but the issue may arise again. The agency said it may “reconsider this issue in the future if appropriate technical data is available for our review.” Either way, frequent fliers should be pleased that flying will soon be a much less isolating experience as email, Google searches, and instant messaging are on the horizon.