Mobile phone calls set to take off as Europe approves aircraft use

AIR TRAVEL is to get a lot noisier as passengers are allowed to make mobile calls and send texts while flying in Europe for the first time.

The European Commission adopted a new licensing regime yesterday that will allow airlines in Europe to begin offering mobile services this year.

Ryanair confirmed yesterday it would test mobile phone technology in June on 20 of its aircraft from one of its European bases with connections to the Republic.

Aer Lingus said it was reviewing the issue. "We do hope at some stage to be able to operate the service but it does take a number of weeks to install the technology on each aircraft," a spokesman for the airline said, "so not in the immediate future but hopefully, yes, in the future."

Under the plan, mobile users will be able to make phone calls through an onboard mobile phone base station connected to the ground via satellite. Passengers will be allowed to turn their mobiles on when the aircraft reaches 3,000 metres after take- off, when other electronic devices such as laptops are permitted.

The commission said previous safety concerns that mobiles could interfere with onboard communications systems had been overcome because the base station installed on aircraft would lower the power levels of mobile handsets significantly. This would also prevent passengers' phones from interfering with mobile networks on the ground.

The new service will not come cheap. The only commercial service currently available, which is on Emirates flights between Dubai and Casablanca, costs up to $4 a minute.

David Coiley, vice-president of Aeromobile, which supplies Emirates with the mobile technology, said existing mobile firms would set their own charges for inflight calls.

He also sought to play down fears that passengers could become upset by constant chatter on phones and mobiles ringing incessantly.

"We encourage appropriate use of mobiles," he said. "Everyone is welcomed on a flight by a text message asking them to turn their phone to silent. The amount of calls that can be made at the same time on a flight is also restricted to six initially. This can be extended to 14 and 28 calls, but it is not a free-for-all."

Aeromobile uses technology from a Kerry-based technology company, Altobridge, whose chairman is former tánaiste Dick Spring.

German airline Lufthansa said it did not want to introduce the service because its surveys had shown a large majority of its customers were against it. "People don't want to be disturbed," said a spokesman.

Other airlines such as Air France and BMI do plan to install the technology on their aircraft because of the lucrative revenue-sharing deals they can sign with mobile operators.

© 2008 The Irish Times

This article appears in the print edition of the Irish Times