• Is it possible to use the smartphone in flight?

    From 2023, it will be possible to use it normally

We are all used to hearing, during the emergency demonstration, that mobile devices must remain in flight mode during the flight, right?

Well, this has changed because the European Commission has started the procedure so that, from 2023, passengers will be able to use mobile devices on board aeroplanes as normal.

Of course, there will be certain limitations that will depend on each airline but, for now, it will be possible to surf the internet, check email, upload content to social networks or make and receive calls.


Why was’t it possible to use the smartphone on board before?

You’re probably asking yourself, why hasn’t this measure been implemented before? It’s very simple, and we’ll explain it below.

Aviation is a means of transport in which safety is the main maxim. In the navigation equipment used until now, there was a certain risk of interference in the event of using mobile devices on board the aircraft.

In addition, the advent of 5G makes it possible to use frequencies far beyond those used by aircraft. Thus, an exclusive frequency will be reserved within the 5G network for use by devices connected in flight.

In 2023, it will be possible to use smartphones on board

To provide this in-flight service, airlines will have to install a picocell on the aircraft that will connect the in-flight network to the ground network via satellite.

As mentioned above, the European Commission is working on reserving a number of frequencies to be used for this type of communication.

This major change was made public in a statement by Thierry Breton, European Commissioner for the Internal Market, in which he remarked that, with today’s ultra-fast and high-capacity connection possibilities, we can no longer consider the sky as the limit.

The next step is to create an organised system that avoids cost overruns for users, as on long flights, telephone networks from different countries will be used.

We hope you have found this article useful and, as you know, next time you travel by plane, you can continue discovering aeronautical curiosities in our aviation blog.

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