In-Flight Cellphone Use Has Arrived

Say goodbye to one of the last remaining phone-free havens.

Emirates Airlines is outfitting its planes with technology that will allow passengers to use their mobile phones in flight. The system went into effect for the first time this week on an Airbus A340 flight between Dubai and Casablanca. Emirates is partnering on the project with AeroMobile, which has developed technology that allows cellular phones to work at a low-enough level that they don't risk interfering with a plane's other systems. Emirates is shelling out $27 million to roll the system out fleetwide.

Perhaps hoping to allay passenger fears about being stuck next to a cellphone-wielding Chatty Charlie on a 13-hour flight to Tokyo, Emirates says passengers will only be allowed to make five or six calls per flight. And they point out that flight crews will have the power to turn the system on and off as needed, making it less likely that the woman sitting in 26D is able to initiate a conference call at 3 in the morning. Plus, the airline will ask all passengers to switch their phones to silent or vibrate when they board. Which is great, because, you know, that works really well at the movies.

The airlines have been threatening to do this for years. American Airlines has tested technology developed by Qualcomm, and Air France and bmi have also experimented with the in-flight calls.

Depending on your point of view, this is either a great step forward, or just another reason to dread boarding an airplane.