Inflight Wi-Fi & Aviation

Advancements in Wi-Fi technology set to increase the use of passenger wireless devices on flights, says Bashar Dahabra by Al Badawa

In this article that was written in 2005, according to the two years of research done by Airbus, it is possible to use wireless communication devices and it could be as common as on ground.  There have been many advancements with WiFi technology that make it possible to use cell phones, laptops, ect. during flight.  For quite some time people believed that the use of cell phones would interfere with the aircrafts radio-navigation systems and the communication between pilots and air traffic controllers; but the studies in the past had come to conclusion that mobile devices, in-fact, do not interfere with the navigation systems.  In this article, it also mentioned that cell phones would be permitted in flights by at least 2006 and airlines were in the process of advancing with the plans to equip their aircraft with systems that would enable passengers to use their mobile devices all the times with no risk to the aircraft's communication systems.  The dangers that came with mobile devices was originated by theory rather than scientific evidence. According to this article (again - written in 2005), as more airlines warm up to the idea, more will start providing the infrastructure to enable wireless communications on board.  

Personally, I like reading articles like this from the past.  There are some points in it where we have made the advancements and others that we have yet to.  For instance, it is very common to have inflight WiFi on board but it can not be used at all times (like take off and landings).  Another example I like is the advancements they talk about with the use of mobile phones on board.  It is possible to use them in "flight mode", but it still not possible to actually talk and text during the flight.  I am still skeptical about using cell phones for talking and texting during flight because of the theory that had originated and I probably wouldn't be very fond of it anyway because it would be a disturbance (I like sleeping through long flights!).  We have come a long way with technology.  We went from limited electronic devices to using broadband on board and it is very interesting to see how far we have come.  I wonder what the Wright brothers would think!  Now what will the next 7 years present us with? 

Advancements in wi-fi technology set to increase the use of passenger wireless devices on flights, says bashar dahabra. (2005, May 08). Al Bawaba, pp. 1-1. Retrieved from http://proxy.consortiumlibrary.org/docview/194798691?accountid=14473