A passenger checks her cellphone after boarding a flight in Boston. For the past decade fliers haven’t been able to use electronic devices while planes are below 10,000 feet because they might interfere with cockpit instruments, but the Federal Aviation Administration declared Thursday that interference isn’t a concern anymore.NEW YORK – A day after setting off an uproar among travelers opposed to the idea of in-flight phone calls, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission Chairman backtracked, saying he personally isn’t in favor of calls on planes.
“We understand that many passengers would prefer that voice calls not be made on airplanes. I feel that way myself,” chairman Tom Wheeler said in a Friday statement.
The role of the FCC, he added, is to advise if there is a safety issue with using phones on planes. Amending the agency’s rules “will be only a technical advisory.” The decision to allow calls will ultimately rest with the airlines, Wheeler emphasized.
Just three weeks into his job, Wheeler struck a nerve with travelers Thursday when he said it was time for the agency to review “our outdated and restrictive rules” about mobile services on airplanes. The rules have been in place for 22 years. A tentative agenda for the FCC’s Dec. 12 meeting, posted Thursday, listed the proposed revision. It was the first the public heard of the change.
Wheeler seemingly underestimated the public outrage and media attention that such a move would generate.