Some totally unsubstantiated info on airline procedures that ring true to me:

[hedgehog]

1. Your lap top and other electronic devices do not interfere with the plane's navigation system and other controls. HOWEVER, most accidents take place during landings and take-offs. If you're fumbling around shutting down your laptop or zoned out listening to your head phones, you won't be listening to emergency instructions or moving as fast as possible to the nearest exit. Not to mention that that laptop is quite a substantial projectile if it isn't secured.

2. True, your cell phone doesn't mess with the plane, either. If you're yammering away during take-off or landing, see point 1 above. During flight, as the plane is traveling at 600mph, your cell phone screws up the cell phone transmission system by tying up multiple towers. Your cell phone has to stay off during flight to avoid overloading the cell phone system.

Bonus: why shouldn't you inflate your life vest before leaving the cabin? Because you might have to go down under water to get out through an exit. Mu son told me of a disaster in which a hi-jacked plane ended up on a reef off the coast of Ethiopia. The plane was in about 10 or 20 feet of water. People survived the landing, then drowned because their inflated life vests kept them from exiting the plane.

[gateley]

1. That's interesting about the inflatable vests --

hope none of us ever has to use that info, but good to know!

[KharmaTrain]

2. You Have A Lot Of That Correct

The RF that is generated from your puter is minimal...there's plenty of other electronics inside that plane that put out the same harmonics and noise that you'd hope it's filtered from the communications system. It's not like days of yore when old AM radios could create a little signal that could jam a plane's radar or other communications gear. Today both personal communications and avionics are far more sophisticated and "cleaner". Cellphones also do not create interference as they operate on frequencies above what most avionics use. It's not like a CB radio that could open and close your neighbor's garage or mess up the TV. Case in point, there were plenty of people using their cellphones on 9/11...it sure didn't affect the outcome that day.

Your point about it being a distraction is more the point. Take offs and landings are times when passengers need to be the most alert. Also it keeps from laptops and other toys from flying around the cabin when the plane lifts off. IMHO the cellphone ban is a financial one. They want you to use their "airphones" or to come up with a way to charge your phone a roaming charge. The same goes for puters...there are on-board internet systems available but the airlines want to charge for access to that as well. Just more ways to maximize profits.

[hedgehog]

3. My son gave me a long and thorough technical explanation

about how the towers are designed to hand-off a cell phone signal from a car traveling 60MPH but don't realize that they need to do a hand-off for a call from a plane traveling 600mph. In effect, as you make your call, you leave behind a series of cell phone towers trying to receive your signal.

[KharmaTrain]

4. Internet Uses A Satellite System

Last year I flew Jet Blue (before they screwed over DKOS and now are the official airline of Gramps campaign) and they had live TV via satellite...and I know internet service is offered as well. I'm not certain if there's phone service as well.

I understand what you mean about cellphones...I get a kick out of pulling mine out on a flight and watching the time zone change. I could imagine the drop-out problem. However, I also remember reading several years back that a major reason the airlines objected to cellphones was to direct people to use their onboard one.

Thank you for your information...