In flight messaging and mobile phone usage may take off!!

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23596154/

As someone who flies a lot, I personally like being able to shut off my phone and ignore people for a while and but I appreciate the fact that other people can't use them even more! I don't want to spend a 10 hour flight (or even a 25 minute one for that matter!) listening to someone yell at their boyfriend, some lady tell her friend about how crappy the in flight food was, or the person sitting next to me can't sleep and feels the need to talk all night long to everyone he knows!  Oh, man I can imagine the horror.  Oh and if you were the flight attendants, can you imagine trying to serve someone a drink and they have to be like, "oh hold on 1 minute, I'm talking here!"

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23596154/

As someone who flies a lot, I personally like being able to shut off my phone and ignore people for a while and but I appreciate the fact that other people can't use them even more! I don't want to spend a 10 hour flight (or even a 25 minute one for that matter!) listening to someone yell at their boyfriend, some lady tell her friend about how crappy the in flight food was, or the person sitting next to me can't sleep and feels the need to talk all night long to everyone he knows!  Oh, man I can imagine the horror.  Oh and if you were the flight attendants, can you imagine trying to serve someone a drink and they have to be like, "oh hold on 1 minute, I'm talking here!"

Took the words right out of my mouth. Like air-rage is not enough of a problem as is. Initially, I read about them trialing only txt and email and I didn't see the harm. Listening to a woman curse out her florist on the tube (true story!) is bareable cause I can either move or get off. If she's squeezed next to me in economy, I don't think I could handle it.

Any airline that adopts this policy will no longer have my business, that's for sure! 

If it comes down to it, I'll start swimming home for visits.

I would LOVE to be able to text during a flight!
But no... i dont want to hear other people's phone conversations.

Agreed - texting and email access are fine, welcomed even!  But anything that infringes audibly upon other passengers?  It'll be like flying in a plane full of crying babies!

Yes, that was my thought- okay- texting/emailing is all good (so long as the stupid ring tone that a text came through is off!) but the minute someone has a conversation, uggh!!

I agree but a mobile for emmergency use is very handy to have.

But most times my wife has flown she had no reception anyway once the plain took off till she landed.


Indy

I agree but a mobile for emmergency use is very handy to have.

What kind of emergency is going to arise whilst flying at 30,000 feet that a mobile phone call is going to sort out?   

That was my thought too!  If the plane is gonna crash, its gonna crash and there is little a mobile phone can do about that.  Besides, I think that they'd make an exception on mobile phone usage if that was the case!

I just think about all those people in the airport lounges, talking just for the sake of talking and having those stupid conversations...'Hi, so what are you doing, oh yeah I'm just sitting here waiting to board...blah blah' and they annoy the hell out of me!!

Imagine if that was ocurring for an 8 hour flight? Wow would that be annoying.   >:(I think the same thing about using mobiles on the Tube.

I also agree, that its nice to not have anyone talking on mobiles for awhile--nice break!

I just think about all those people in the airport lounges, talking just for the sake of talking and having those stupid conversations...'Hi, so what are you doing, oh yeah I'm just sitting here waiting to board...blah blah' and they annoy the hell out of me!!

Imagine if that was ocurring for an 8 hour flight? Wow would that be annoying.   >:(I think the same thing about using mobiles on the Tube.

I'm with you.  I might be a rarity these days, but I only use my mobile for calls when I have something specific to say - like when my train gets in, or should I pick up anything from the shops on the way home.  My sister, on the other hand, uses her mobile to kill time - like when she gets off work early and has an hour to kill before her ride shows up, I'll get a call, even if she's got nothing really to say.  It's really annoying!  It's not that I don't talk on the phone - I do!  But I do it in the privacy of my own home, or I step outside  the pub/grocery store/shop/whatever so that I'm not inflicting my call on everyone inside.

No offense to anyone whose mobile is permanently attached to their ear and mouth - unless you're sitting next to me on a plane/train/automobile.

i travel a lot for work- and if in flight cell phoning became doable- there would be pressure from work to keep your phone on and to answer it when at 30,000ft.

bollocks.

there's this horrible squeeze nowadays- every waking moment must be productive- if not for your company- than for you.  sometimes it's nice to turn your phone, computer, pda off and just read a book.  if i didn't fly so much, i wouldn't ever have an "excuse" to read.

argh.

i travel a lot for work- and if in flight cell phoning became doable- there would be pressure from work to keep your phone on and to answer it when at 30,000ft.

bollocks.

there's this horrible squeeze nowadays- every waking moment must be productive- if not for your company- than for you.  sometimes it's nice to turn your phone, computer, pda off and just read a book.  if i didn't fly so much, i wouldn't ever have an "excuse" to read.

argh.

Yes, yes, YES!  I totally agree.

I'm with you Meg and Meggles!

If you're flying for business (like I do a lot) than you'd be "on company time" and be expected to answer the phone and respond to emails.  Then you'd be forced to listen to people go "oh well I'm bored, the movies suck, the flight attendants were mean to me, the people around me smell"  then call the next person to do the same.   
I also use my mobile only for communication when necessary and emergencies and not to have random conversations.  A £10 top up can last me months- I just topped up my mobile (and it still had like £3 on it) since I moved here January 3rd! 

There is a girl who takes the same bus as I do and on the ride home she gets on the bus whilst on the phone and talks the entire ride. It does. my. head. in. Honestly I have to remember to pick a seat away from where she usually sits and then I crank my IPod. I absolutely 100% could not take that for the duration of a flight.

Texting and emailing would be EXCELLENT though.