Cell phones on GA aircraft

I know the FCC says you're not supposed to use cell phones on an
aircraft (even though recent studies show that such use does not
overload multiple base stations, as the FCC originally feared).
However, has anyone tried it on small aircraft? There is some concern
about cell phones interfering with avionics on commercial airliners
(the jury is still out for most scenarios), but I don't know if the
phones make any difference on a small plane. I suppose it depends on
how much of a glass cockpit you have. Will anyone admit to using
phones on a GA aircraft?

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.

Mxsmanic wrote:
I know the FCC says you're not supposed to use cell phones on an
aircraft

Actually, the FCC only says that for certain wireless phone
services. Not all of them have that prohibition written in
the regs.

(even though recent studies show that such use does not
overload multiple base stations, as the FCC originally feared).

It's less of a problem now that we've moved away from the original
AMPS (analog) cellular phone. However, the study you are probably
thinking about doesn't say what you are proposing. It is talking
about the Aircell guys identifying that THEIR airborne use (which
is not standard cellular) doesn't cause any untoward interference
to the ground based systems on the same frequency.

However, has anyone tried it on small aircraft?

The problem is that it doesn't work. Once we went to much fancier
digital systems and antenna systems designed to really pack in the
density, trying to hit them from over 1000 feet just doesn't work.

Handheld cell phones have never put out more than 850mw when
operating at high power (and they would use much less in
a plane) and the modern digital ones put out even a fraction of that.
It's unlikely that avionics would suffer much.

Modern GSM phones don't seem to get any coverage at altitude. When I
had my CDMA phone I could send emails when I flow over populated areas.
Now, nothing.

-Robert


Mxsmanic wrote:
I know the FCC says you're not supposed to use cell phones on an
aircraft (even though recent studies show that such use does not
overload multiple base stations, as the FCC originally feared).
However, has anyone tried it on small aircraft? There is some concern
about cell phones interfering with avionics on commercial airliners
(the jury is still out for most scenarios), but I don't know if the
phones make any difference on a small plane. I suppose it depends on
how much of a glass cockpit you have. Will anyone admit to using
phones on a GA aircraft?

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.

In a previous article, Mxsmanic said:
how much of a glass cockpit you have. Will anyone admit to using
phones on a GA aircraft?

I can't get a signal at cruise altitude in the US. I can in Canada, but
I've never tried to make a call or even send an SMS.


--
Paul Tomblin http://blog.xcski.com/
Make backups before you try something new or interesting or experimental
or radical or if the day has a "y" in it.
-- Chris Hacking

On Sat, 14 Oct 2006 12:27:04 -0400, Ron Natalie
wrote:

Mxsmanic wrote:
I know the FCC says you're not supposed to use cell phones on an
aircraft

Actually, the FCC only says that for certain wireless phone
services. Not all of them have that prohibition written in
the regs.

However, has anyone tried it on small aircraft?

The problem is that it doesn't work. Once we went to much fancier
digital systems and antenna systems designed to really pack in the
density, trying to hit them from over 1000 feet just doesn't work.

Handheld cell phones have never put out more than 850mw when
operating at high power (and they would use much less in
a plane) and the modern digital ones put out even a fraction of that.
It's unlikely that avionics would suffer much.

I once called my favorite CFII to make an appointment. When she
answered the phone, there was a lot of background noise but we could
still converse. She was talking to me on her cell phone while she was
instructing. Obviously, it can work.

Of course that was most likely at relatively low altitude in the
practice area, near civilization. Many areas where I fly there's no
cell coverage at all, on the ground or otherwise. A look at the
service provider's coverage map tells the story. Much of the area is
RF wilderness.

RK Henry

I'm confused -- I thought in a previous thread you said you lived in
Paris? If so, why does the FCC matter? (Or am I wrong about where
you live...?)

Chris
---
Mxsmanic writes:
I know the FCC says you're not supposed to use cell phones on an
aircraft (even though recent studies show that such use does not
overload multiple base stations, as the FCC originally feared).
However, has anyone tried it on small aircraft? There is some concern
about cell phones interfering with avionics on commercial airliners
(the jury is still out for most scenarios), but I don't know if the
phones make any difference on a small plane. I suppose it depends on
how much of a glass cockpit you have. Will anyone admit to using
phones on a GA aircraft?

--
Transpose mxsmanic and gmail to reach me by e-mail.

RK Henry wrote in
:

Of course that was most likely at relatively low altitude in the
practice area, near civilization. Many areas where I fly there's no
cell coverage at all, on the ground or otherwise. A look at the
service provider's coverage map tells the story. Much of the area is
RF wilderness.

Actually, I have found my cell phone to work better in God's country then
over civilization. Less cell towers to hit on to confuse the phone is my
guess.

My experiences is that the higher you go, the less reliability you get.
For me, seems that 6000 AGL is the point where the reliablity decrease
substantially. Other then my own experiences, nothing to back up to the
reasons why.

Allen

Christopher Brian Colohan wrote in
:

I'm confused -- I thought in a previous thread you said you lived in
Paris? If so, why does the FCC matter? (Or am I wrong about where
you live...?)

You are right Chris, but the dude lives in a simulated world *smile*

Allen

I've called people from about 6000 ft. This was back in the days of
TDMA. Now that I'm on CDMA it's harder. I did send an e-mail from
about 8000 ft. the other day.

--Dan


RK Henry wrote:
On Sat, 14 Oct 2006 12:27:04 -0400, Ron Natalie
wrote:

Mxsmanic wrote:
I know the FCC says you're not supposed to use cell phones on an
aircraft

Actually, the FCC only says that for certain wireless phone
services. Not all of them have that prohibition written in
the regs.

However, has anyone tried it on small aircraft?

The problem is that it doesn't work. Once we went to much fancier
digital systems and antenna systems designed to really pack in the
density, trying to hit them from over 1000 feet just doesn't work.

Handheld cell phones have never put out more than 850mw when
operating at high power (and they would use much less in
a plane) and the modern digital ones put out even a fraction of that.
It's unlikely that avionics would suffer much.

I once called my favorite CFII to make an appointment. When she
answered the phone, there was a lot of background noise but we could
still converse. She was talking to me on her cell phone while she was
instructing. Obviously, it can work.

Of course that was most likely at relatively low altitude in the
practice area, near civilization. Many areas where I fly there's no
cell coverage at all, on the ground or otherwise. A look at the
service provider's coverage map tells the story. Much of the area is
RF wilderness.

RK Henry

"Robert M. Gary" wrote in
oups.com:

Modern GSM phones don't seem to get any coverage at altitude. When I
had my CDMA phone I could send emails when I flow over populated areas.
Now, nothing.

-Robert



You don't have to go very high to be "at altitude" to not receive a
cell phone signal. Two years ago on July 4 at the top of the Stratosphere
tower in Las Vegas, I overheard several people remarkng how their cell
phones had roamed to analog to connect. My phone is CDMA and was not able
to pick up a digital signal, either on network or digital roaming while
analog roaming gave a solid signal. Excellent digital signal at ground
level.

--
Marty Shapiro
Silicon Rallye Inc.

(remove SPAMNOT to email me)