Cellphone calls from an airplane

[billvon 3,073]

We made a little bit of history today. We made the first legal cellphone calls from an aircraft in flight. The demonstration was attended by Bloomberg, FOX News, ABC, CBS, the WSJ etc and was a collaboration between American Airlines and Qualcomm. We had 30 or so phones on board for people to use, and we set the limit at 12 simultaneous calls at once. The calls went through a picocell on board, and was linked back to the ground by the Globalstar aviation data system I designed a few years ago. We even coordinated with Sprint and got access to their HLR, which allowed people with Sprint phones to both send and receive calls on their own phones normally on board the plane.

A lot of work went into this demo, involving safety testing, hardware and software development and trials of various subsystems over the past few years. Everyone seemed to have a pretty good experience; there were a few dropped frames (resulting in choppy speech) and a few calls that didn't go through, but all in all the demo went really well. For the technical team ("the men in black") there was a lot of pressure and nail-biting, but our good luck charm (a whiffle ball we found one night during a pub crawl in Covington, Kentucky) came through.

And now, as they say, it's miller time. We're in a bar in DFW, where we have actually started to know the waitresses by name. After this I'm off to New York (Fire Island to be exact) to lie on the beach for a few days. After a week of 30 hour days and working in aircraft in Dallas with no APU (and therefore no air conditioning) it's time for some sloth.

[wmw999 2,543]

That's too cool.
Now -- about that Fire Island thing -- you could come down to Houston for Skyfest, ya know
Wendy W.

There is nothing more dangerous than breaking a basic safety rule and getting away with it. It removes fear of the consequences and builds false confidence. (tbrown)

[usskydiver 0]

Nice one, Bill.

Tim T.
Team Paraclete

[PhreeZone 20]

So calling from the Otter or under canopy is'nt legal?

Is AA actually looking into buying this technology for use in their fleet?

Yesterday is history
And tomorrow is a mystery

Parachutemanuals.com

[jtval 0]

after all that impressive stuff all I can think to say is that FIRE island is a bery cool place if you know where to go

enjoy the ocean

My photos

My Videos

[mouth 0]

So can I use my phone tomorrow on the plane????? PLEASE

--
Hot Mama
At least you know where you stand even if it is in a pile of shit.

[Keith 0]

Quote

After a week of 30 hour days

Hey!?! Who do I have to talk to to get an extra 6 hours added to my days? I could've sure used a few extra hours in each day this past few weeks.

Keith

Don't Fuck with me Keith - J. Mandeville

[lawrocket 3]

Did they get hit with roaming charges?

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[usedtajump 1]

FUCK!!!!! Now I have to listen to inane cellphone conversations on an airplane too??

The older I get the less I care who I piss off.

[billvon 3,073]

>Hey!?! Who do I have to talk to to get an extra 6 hours added to my days?

Here's how you do it:

Get up early (4am) to do work in San Diego that can't wait until you're back. Fly out at 2pm. Get to Dallas at 9pm, then get back on the plane at 11pm to do some testing. Finish testing at 6am, then get back and try to sleep for a few hours until Paul calls you and says "What are you, asleep, ya lazy bastard?"

[ianmdrennan 2]

Great news!! So now I also have to listen to more useless conversations while I'm in flight. Like having to hear them walking down the street, in the gym, in a restaurant, ad nauseum isn't enough already.

Gee thanks. If you use your cell for business, good for you. The rest of you - your lives are not so freaking important that the rest of us have to listen to you drone on. IT CAN WAIT!

Ian

Performance Designs Factory Team

[Lindsey 0]

Congrats!!!! Time to exhale now?

Peace~
Lindsey

--
A conservative is just a liberal who's been mugged. A liberal is just a conservative who's been to jail

[mathias 0]

if the PIC approves it , it's ok

Ingen minns en fegis!

[mathias 0]

Congratulations,
I guess You have come a long way since You asked me if You could use a phone onboard the Caravan....

Ingen minns en fegis!

[mouth 0]

Geez...a little grumpy about cell phones I take it. Don't you have one?

--
Hot Mama
At least you know where you stand even if it is in a pile of shit.

[diablopilot 2]

Exactly.

----------------------------------------------
You're not as good as you think you are. Seriously.

[skymut 0]

It sounds like you are pretty smart!

Matt
A well-informed person is somebody who has the same views and opinions as yours.

[Katzeye 0]

**Congratz** I know you've been working hard on that one.

Now make cell phones work from underwater, in the middle of the ocean and I'll really be impressed!



LH*

Is a chicken omelette redundant?

[DaGimp 0]

Quote

under canopy is'nt legal?

oops....cause i have made and recieved calls from under canopy

"Professor of Pimpology"~~~Bolas

[freeflir29 0]

Cool! But I have to say...........work will be worse when I have to listen to 200+ idiots yelling into their cell phones on the plane too.

[ltdiver 3]

Quote

Cool! But I have to say...........work will be worse when I have to listen to 200+ idiots yelling into their cell phones on the plane too.

Wear earplugs.

ltdiver

Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon

[freeflir29 0]

Quote

Wear earplugs.

Not a smart thing for me to do. I had to get used to listening to movies in one ear. I never wear the headset on the ear that faces the aisle. I need to be able to hear all the screaming when the hijacking starts.

[ltdiver 3]

Quote

Quote

Wear earplugs.

Not a smart thing for me to do. I had to get used to listening to movies in one ear. I never wear the headset on the ear that faces the aisle. I need to be able to hear all the screaming when the hijacking starts.

Now, did you click on the fun web site I provided you?

ltdiver

Don't tell me the sky's the limit when there are footprints on the moon

[freeflir29 0]

Quote

Now, did you click on the fun web site I provided you?

I enjoyed the pics but No Spreken Ze.

[FrogNog 1]

Quote

FUCK!!!!! Now I have to listen to inane cellphone conversations on an airplane too??

I bring earplugs _and_ mufflers (like for using at the shooting range). Together all I can usually hear is my breathing, my neck bones sliding over their bursae, and blood moving through the vessels in my head. And nothing says "Do not bother me" to the person next to you like putting in earplugs and then putting gun mufflers over them.

-=-=-=-=-
Pull.