Turning off Electronic Devices?

[Kai Stemm]

On a recent China airlines flight,
We were flying through a storm and a flight attendant says "our captain has requested that passengers turn off their electronic devices as our captain is experiencing navigation problems" I know about no cell or other communication but I was watching a movie (Gravity) on my tablet and was asked to turn it off.

 

[GrauGeist]

Cellphones and other electronic devices can interfere with nav systems by way of EM radiation.

Most tablets use WiFi, some have cell options...her request was a blanket request.

 

[vikingBerserker]

I thought the Mythbusters proved the interference thingy as false..

 

[Capt. Vick]

Kari Byron yum

 

[mikewint]

From a CNN report:
The risk is low
We can find no instance in which electromagnetic interference from a portable electronic device brought down a commercial plane or was a contributing factor in an accident. And the National Transportation Safety Board says it has never issued a recommendation about such devices on planes.
But those who flatly say there's no evidence that electronic devices have caused interference on planes are wrong.
A cell phone doesn't have to jam the pilot's radio or distort a plane's glideslope to cause a catastrophe. That scenario is unlikely. But safety officials worry that portable electronic devices could contribute to an accident.
At Boeing's Electromagnetic Interference Lab in Seattle, engineer Kenny Kirchoff enters a room shielded from electrical energy. He turns on a laptop positioned near an antenna and then points to a monitor. The laptop's electrical emissions are superimposed over a line depicting airplane radio frequency
"You can see that some of the signals from the laptop actually jump over the limit," Kirchoff said. "So that means there's a potential that this piece of equipment could interfere with the VFR radios."
"It's not necessarily that a phone can bring down an airplane," he said. "That's not really the issue. The issue is interfering with the airplane and causing more work for the pilots during critical phases of flight. So when they take off and when they land, those are phases of flight which require a high level of concentration by the pilots."
A problem caused by a portable electronic device could distract the pilots' attention, lowering the level of safety on the plane.
Pilots have reported cases of suspected interference.
From 2003 to 2009, there were 75 instances of suspected electronic device interference, including 29 involving mobile phones, according to a study by the International Air Transport Association.
That is one event for every 283,300 flights.
Though rare, the reports suggest that such interference can affect almost every aircraft system, from communication and navigation systems to flight controls (such as autopilot) and warning systems.
The International Air Transport Association could not independently validate that personal electronics caused the problems. Replicating the problems can be difficult or impossible.
But the pilots who reported the problems seemed convinced, saying that when passengers were instructed to turn off electronic devices, the problem went away.
The FAA, saying that personal electronics "could be potentially hazardous to aircraft communications and navigation," has largely handed over responsibility to the airlines. The airlines -- not the FAA -- are responsible for determining which electronic devices may be used on planes safely.
Airlines also are responsible for determining when devices can be used. Most airlines follow FAA guidance that devices be allowed when the airplane is above 10,000 feet, which gives pilots time to troubleshoot problems that arise. Airlines that want to allow devices below 10,000 feet must certify that the specific devices are safe.
Cell phones and laptops with wireless network capabilities -- devices that transmit signals -- fall into a category of their own when in transmit mode. Those transmissions are banned by both the FAA, because of potential airplane interference, and the Federal Communications Commission, because of potential interference with wireless networks on the ground.
And for that reason, the government industry committee reviewing portable electronic usage will not consider the airborne use of cell phones for voice communications during flight.
In the future, you're likely to see more and more cell phone and WiFi services offered on planes but only as part of airplane-based systems designed to handle the signals.
But when is a cell phone a cell phone? Many passengers just aren't sure.
"It remains a fact that passengers do not really know -- when turning their (smart phones) 'on' and 'off' onboard an aircraft -- if they activate WiFi only and/or cellular functions," Airbus wrote in its submission to the FAA.
And if passengers don't know how to operate the devices they own, can flight attendants be expected to understand the ones they don't?
When the FAA first regulated electronic devices in 1966, regulators were concerned about FM radio interference. Today, travelers come equipped with smart phones and tablets, WiFi and e-readers, Bluetooth technology and noise-canceling headphones.
Meanwhile, planes have grown more sophisticated, too. In 1966, mechanical linkages connected the cockpit with the control surfaces; today, miles of wires do the trick. The potential for interference is growing.
But modern planes are also being built with portable electronics in mind. Newer aircraft are "hardened" against electromagnetic interference, "immunizing" them from problems.
But the FAA must consider non-technical factors as well.
Will passenger use of electronic devices keep them from listening to safety briefings? Will laptop computers, if used during takeoffs and landings, become missiles if the plane encounters turbulence?
And what can airlines do to get compliance with new rules when the old rules are so routinely ignored?

 

[rochie]

Kari Byron yum

Just a shame she is a vegetarian, not sure I can get past that

 

[at6]

Just a shame she is a vegetarian, not sure I can get past that

Just become a vegetable.

 

[GrauGeist]

I thought the Mythbusters proved the interference thingy as false..

There is a potential for EMI to effect the aircraft's IFR under 10,000 feet, so fhey err on the side of caution.

 

[mikewint]

Or a balloon animal

YOU'RE WELCOME!

 

[Kai Stemm]

Or a balloon animal
View attachment 362073
YOU'RE WELCOME!

Not going to post pictures but she did do a photo shoot

 

[vikingBerserker]

Dam you Mike....................!

 

[Old Wizard]

 

[mikewint]

Continuing our study of Classical Newtonian Physics we have an illustration of Inertia or the First Law of Motion:
Objects in Motion tend to remain in motion unless acted upon by an outside force...

YOU'RE WELCOME AGAIN!

 

[Old Wizard]

 

[Wurger]

 

[mikewint]

Well I'm disappointed...I tried to raise the intellectual level around here and what do I get...
Tis time to bring balance to the Force

 

[at6]

Shame on you Mike. We can't make it to your favorite strip club to watch these "hotties" perform. Put an extra Hamhock in the "G" string for us.

 

[Old Wizard]

 

[Wayne Little]

 

[vikingBerserker]

....on the bright side after seeing that I am pretty dang sure I will not blow my diet today.