29 January 2010

Oman Air Allows In-Flight Cell Phones and Texting


Hello All BlkAv8tor2003 Checking In!!!

So here it comes! The ways of WiFi and inflight cell phone usage. Is this a good thing or not? Some parts are good especially in the light of the recent inflight issues, fights and terrorist type attacks onboard the airlines these days! The bad, will be the loud talker on a cell phone or if someone has to listen to a guy argue with his woman and not be mindful of the area he is in and what he says! This will be one of the biggest problems the airlines will have in the future.

American carriers are not there yet but I know it's coming in the near future and it won't be as good as the non-U.S. carriers. Americans will more than likely abuse this service before is implemented on all carriers. Flight attendants can barely get passengers to listen to them now about not using electronic devices and when, not to mention overnight flight and the disturbance of sleeping passengers. Now we eventually will give the passengers access to cell phones and texting during flight.

This would be a good opportunity to start training the passengers on how to travel and get the most beneficial use of their portable electronic devices before, during and after the flight! I don't totally agree with it because I know how passengers will be especially when the passenger on the phone is keeping sleeping passengers awake during the flight. Omar Air is one of the few non-U.S. carriers that has it's airplanes fitted with the equipment to handle phone calls and texting so we will see what problems may arise because of it! Hopefully it will give the U.S. carriers some data to make better decision on how to implement this new service!!!

Below you will find the Oman Air press release to get the whole story!

Enjoy your flight and remember To Be Proactive And Not Reactive!!!
BlkAv8tor2003

Oman Air first impressed us with their unnecessarily nice bathrooms, but now they are moving forward to ruin the entire flight experience—maybe. They are launching full mobile capabilities for first class, business, and economy customers. That means cell phones for all up in the skies. You’ll be welcome to text, tweet, and call all of your friends from your seat. Things should be up and running by the middle of February, which is just in time to apologize to your sweetie for not being home on Valentine’s Day.

In-flight WiFi is also coming to the airline’s entire fleet of Airbus A330s, but cell phones ringing throughout the cabin has us worried. We’ve heard some awful ring tones and text message alerts, and are really hoping that passengers leave things on silent. The airline does promise that the crews will control the services, and that the mobile magic can be limited during quiet times like overnight flights.

Oman Air, the national carrier of the Sultanate of Oman, becomes the first airline in the world to offer the full connectivity suite (Mobile OnAir and Internet OnAir) on its commercial widebody aircraft when it starts to unroll full mobile phone and Wi-Fi connectivity across its brand new Airbus A330 fleet by the middle of February.

The move will give passengers in First, Business and Economy classes the opportunity to make and receive mobile phone calls, SMS, use email and the Internet and keep up to date with social networking media, such as Facebook and Twitter.

Launching the new service, Oman Air’s Chief Executive Officer, Peter Hill, says:
“We are delighted to be leading the field by bringing the digital age to in-flight passenger communications. From mid-February we will be unrolling full connectivity across our Airbus A330 fleet, completing the task in the summer. This great new service will enrich the passenger experience and complement the stunning new interiors we are offering in all three classes of travel.

“For many travelers, the ability to communicate via phone, SMS, email or Internet is a vital part of everyday life and staying in contact with friends, family or colleagues will constitute huge benefits for Oman Air’s customers. People are increasingly expecting Internet and mobile connectivity “anywhere, anytime” and what better place is there than on an Oman Air A330, when you have a few quiet hours to catch up on your email, browse the Internet or return that quick phone call.”

Availability of the service will be controlled by the crew to ensure a minimum of disturbance to passengers during, for example, the quietest periods of overnight flights.

Oman Air’s A330 fleet has been fitted with the Airbus ALNA V2 system, using Honeywell’s
SwiftBroadband (SBB) solution. This supports both mobile phone and Internet in-flight communication, ensuring that whatever devices passengers choose to use, they will receive a swift and effective service.

http://www.omanair.com/wy/aboutus/aboutus_media_center/about_media_presrelses/releases_334.htm

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