ipod's and aer lingus

Woden

just a quick question something in the back of my mind is saying ipods aren't allowed in use on aer lingus flights. did this come up a while ago and does anyone know if its implemented.

the flight in question will be transatlantic if that makes any difference

cheers

data

Basq

I'm just waiting for cormie to come in and preach about the wonders of the iRiver!!

It should be no problem to bring in the iPod on the plane, as far as i know.

Well, you'd think so selling products like this: http://www.onecall.com/PID_24748.htm

secret_squirrel

Its been their policy for years - right pain in the butt - however be discrete, tuck the player down by the arm rest where the headphone socket is, avoid the obvious white headphones (or even put up theirs) and they wont have a clue.

Alternatively if you have a pda that plays mp3's use that coz its a computer the rule doesnt apply..

Woden

yeah i just remembered something about aer lingus saying they where banning ipods or something, didn't think it applied to ever air line.

now its possibly i dreamt the whole bloody thing but just said i'd check

Basq

secret_squirrel wrote:

Its been their policy for years - right pain in the butt - however be discrete, tuck the player down by the arm rest where the headphone socket is, avoid the obvious white headphones (or even put up theirs) and they wont have a clue.

Alternatively if you have a pda that plays mp3's use that coz its a computer the rule doesnt apply..

Heh... wish i was aware of this!

Had my iPod on a flight this time last year no problem and was checked by security and all!

secret_squirrel

lol a case of simulataneous posting going on here.

I can confirm they are banned - and always have been - just like cd players and other 'laser controlled electronic devices' :rolleyes:

However follow my advice above and you'll be grand.

Woden

ah cheers for that lads, white earphones have long since be ditched, i'll be discreet or something

cormie

basquille wrote:

I'm just waiting for cormie to come in and preach about the wonders of the iRiver!!

It should be no problem to bring in the iPod on the plane, as far as i know.

Well, you'd think so selling products like this: http://www.onecall.com/PID_24748.htm

Haha

Well here I am... all I can say is... another advantage of the IHP, no white earbuds;) hahaha, purely a joke;) I saw this topic on the last 10 topics or whatever it is by the way. good un basquille.

Basq

cormie wrote:

Haha

Well here I am... all I can say is... another advantage of the IHP, no white earbuds;) hahaha, purely a joke;) I saw this topic on the last 10 topics or whatever it is by the way. good un basquille.

Ha ha..

Tell the truth, you've been refreshing the last 10 topics constantly waiting for 'iPod' to show up in the subject line of a post.

cormie wrote:

another advantage of the IHP, no white earbuds

Can't disagree with you there - i threw out my white earbuds the moment i got my iPod. They're so ugly and noticeable that they just scream 'let's mug the f**ker with the iPod'!

APM

I thought I heard recently aer lingus ditched that nonsense policy about MP3 players and you can use what you like, im not 100% sure about dvd players on laptops but I believe they are allowed also now

Basq

I read somewhere actually recently that on a flight in the US - a bomb squad was sent in to investigate a suspicious device on a plane..

..it was an MP3 Player wrapped in a Coke can..

EDIT: Reported on the 19th May 2004 by Fox News:

Fox News wrote:

A bomb scare occured on an America West passenger plane in Phoenix Arizona this week.

"An MP3 player wrapped around a soda can sparked a bomb scare at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport Wednesday morning, said an official with the Transportation Security Administration. The can was found in the cabin of America West Airlines flight 44 from Phoenix to Washington, D.C. The bomb squad was called in and a bomb-sniffing dog was taken aboard the plane. All 117 passengers were safely evacuated. They will all be re-screened before they are allowed back on a plane to continue on to Washington."

RicardoSmith

Dataisgod wrote:

ah cheers for that lads, white earphones have long since be ditched, i'll be discreet or something

Don't worry about it, sure it only effects the instruments and the pilots never look at them anyway... :eek:

Woden

sure the hard drives on the ipods use special equipment interfering stuff unlike those uber shielded laptop ones

ElNino

I used my Ipod all the way from Chicago this time last year sitting in the back row near the stewardesses station without any trouble. I am flying Shannon - Heathrow next week so I will see if they have got stricter.

monkeyfudge

I used mine on an Aer Lingus flight to Madrid earlier this year and had no problems. They just asked me to turn it off for landing.

But what about Gameboys? What's the deal with that? I've got an 18 hour trip to Brazil in January and I'd love to be able to use my spanking new Nintendo DS which arrives tomorrow...

Hobbes

Just so you know..

Nearly everything (especially gameboys Monkeyfudge) screw with the electronics in the cockpit. However it is safer for the pilot to have his controls go strange while in mid-air then if trying to land.

Tom Dunne

I remember posting on this a while back.

Anyway, Aer Lingus have recently changed their policy. You now CAN use Gameboys and various other previously banned electronic gadgets. Not sure about an Ipod though (give me my Axim any day).

I still think laser controled devices (i.e. CD players and DVD players) are still banned.

Unit00

I recently got back from China and I was using my Ipod with no problems from the cabin crew

sliabh

Apart from the fact it's a daft policy, it seems to be left the the discretion of the aircraft staff to enforce. The last time I was on a transatlantic flight with AL there were a load of girls openly using CD players and the staff didn't say anything to them.

But then last week on an SAS flight I was using a calculator before take off and I was told to turn it off as "all electronic devices are prohibited". I was so shocked at this display of stupidity I forgot to ask them should I take the battery out of my watch as well to be safe.

Bri

From the travel boards:
Old discussion:
http://muppet.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=177189&highlight=gameboy
Update:
http://muppet.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=193749&highlight=gameboy

Khannie

sliabh wrote:

I was so shocked at this display of stupidity I forgot to ask them should I take the battery out of my watch as well to be safe.

ROFL. HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.


AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA.

Oh dear jebus....nearly pissed myself laughing at that one.

savemejebus

flew to london last week with aer lingus and on the flight out they announced that gameboys and non laser operated electronic music devices could be used during the flight but not during landing or takeoff.

On the return flight (also aer lingus) they announced that no electronic devices of any kind could be used on the flight but that laptops were ok during the flight.

isn't consistency lovely

Shiny

I flew to Las Palmas with Air Lingus 3 days ago and I actually
asked the air hostess if it was ok to use my iriver.....

She basicially mumbled......"meh cd players are allowed now so
yes that will be no problem sir".

Friendly and enthusiastic as always.

gibo_ie

guys panic over!!
Just back from Brussels yesterday and in the AerLingus "Cara" magazine it states that iPODS ARE allowed but not during the usual take off/approach and landing.
So listen to your hearts content!!
Page 78 i think but it says it at numerous points in the magazine.

Basq

gibo_ie wrote:

guys panic over!!
Just back from Brussels yesterday and in the AerLingus "Cara" magazine it states that iPODS ARE allowed but not during the usual take off/approach and landing.
So listen to your hearts content!!
Page 78 i think but it says it at numerous points in the magazine.

Cheers for that, gibo_ie. I assumed that they were safe to bring on the flight.

And now i remember hearing on the last flight i took to switch off all electonic equipment during takeoff and again during landing..

Hagar

secret_squirrel wrote:

I can confirm they are banned - and always have been - just like cd players and other 'laser controlled electronic devices'

Just how many lasers are in the average iPod ?

monkeyfudge

Hagar wrote:

Just how many lasers are in the average iPod ?

It's fitted with a laser so you can protect yourself from alien muggers who have spotted your white headphones....

robinph

I thought that this ruling was down to the Irish aviation authority, or whatever they call themselves. Until last year, I think it was, on any Ryanair flight they would not allow any electronic devices which they always claimed was not their own personal ruling and applied to all flights into Ireland.
This then changed so that you could use anything except things with lasers in them like cd players, but laptops were OK.

therecklessone

robinph wrote:

I thought that this ruling was down to the Irish aviation authority, or whatever they call themselves. Until last year, I think it was, on any Ryanair flight they would not allow any electronic devices which they always claimed was not their own personal ruling and applied to all flights into Ireland.

You're patially right. If you're saying the IAA (got the name right by the way) was responsible for "banning" them, then how have airlines other than Aer Lingus and Ryanair got away with allowing personal music players and the like for years now? You know, British Airways, British Midland, SAS, Cityjet and the like...

IIRC, the IAA "ruling" was based on guidance issued to airlines in the mid 90s (1994 springs to mind) on dealing with electronic equipment on board. Airline schose to interpret this guidance in different ways, hence Aer Lingus being the last Irish-based airline to allow iPods and the like.

kenmc

secret_squirrel wrote:

'laser controlled electronic devices' :rolleyes:

Yeah - what a f*ck up. they're electronic controlled laser devices to start off with..
And I love the way you're allowed use a laptop once you're airborne, even though a lot of laptops have a built in CD/DVD player!
I used to watch DivXs on my laptop flyng back and forth a bit, and they'd always come up to me "oh no you can't watch dvds" and once I'd tell them it was on me hard disk they'd be ok - but i doubt they'd have the ability to check even if they wanted to...
K

secret_squirrel

kenmc wrote:

Yeah - what a f*ck up. they're electronic controlled laser devices to start off with.. "oh no you can't watch dvds" and once I'd tell them it was on me hard disk they'd be ok -

Love to meet the guy/gal who came up with that line and give them the slapping they so richly deserve....

I've pulled the 'its on my harddrive' stunt too

monument

A tad off-topic, but you might like to know (according to the Economist) "Contrary to popular belief, mobile phones do not pose a safety threat to airliners". They are banned because they would interfere with the phone networks, not the aeroplanes.

It’s best not to argue with cabin crew about this.

secret_squirrel wrote:

Love to meet the guy/gal who came up with that line and give them the slapping they so richly deserve....

I've pulled the 'its on my harddrive' stunt too

I’m being serious here – stopping the use of DVDs could have something to do with airlines (partly sensible) policy of avoiding the showing of films where aeroplanes tend to fall out of the sky.

sliabh

monument wrote:

I’m being serious here – stopping the use of DVDs could have something to do with airlines (partly sensible) policy of avoiding the showing of films where aeroplanes tend to fall out of the sky.

That's pretty close to the truth. A lot of this it due to airlines not wanting pissed off passengers. They don't wan't people complaining about having to sit next to someone that was listening to Brittney Spears for 3 hours on ear phones at max volume.

I am dreading the moment (which is coming in a year or two) when in flight mobiles are allowed and you have to put up with "I'M ON THE PLANE" shouted into your ear from the nob in the seat next to you.

secret_squirrel

monument wrote:

A tad off-topic, but you might like to know (according to the Economist) "Contrary to popular belief, mobile phones do not pose a safety threat to airliners".

A friend of mine whose a qualified navigation and instrumentation engineer on Airbuses told me the same.

sliabh

There was an interesting article on theregister.co.uk about this last year. A lot of what he is talking about is anecdotal
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2003/04/29/time_to_challenge_airline_paranoia/

but the essence is, if mobiles cause air crashes, show us the bodies!

I know I have regularly found my mobile to be on in flight. And often on Dublin London flights I can hear people receiving text messages.

RicardoSmith

Pilot friends of mine say they prefer to have them off, and suspect, but are not sure, that they have seen minor interference from something in the main cabin on rare occasions. Could just be gremlins though, how would you know?

sliabh

RicardoSmith wrote:

Pilot friends of mine say they prefer to have them off, and suspect, but are not sure, that they have seen minor interference from something in the main cabin on rare occasions. Could just be gremlins though, how would you know?

The proof that this is all nonsense is that no planes have crashed. And you can tell how seriously the airlines take the whole thing as they just rely on cabin crew to enforce the ban.

There are no detectors in the cabins to check for devices that are supposed to be so dangerous that aircraft systems (normally designed and tested to be impervious to most civilian forms of electronic interference) are affected.

RicardoSmith

I think that means thats theres no proof either way. That doesn't mean that it definately doesn't cause problems. I notice mobile phones interfering with radios and wirless gear at home, even baby monitors. Theres been aircraft downed from the most trival and minor of problems.

Not I'm not saying that they do cause problems. But they have the potential to cause problems.

secret_squirrel

Personally I think its all a scam to rob us blind when they put satellite phones on the back of every seat....

The Real B-man

jaysus you allowed lighters on planes and not ipods :rolleyes:

Jim

secret_squirrel wrote:

lol a case of simulataneous posting going on here.

I can confirm they are banned - and always have been - just like cd players and other 'laser controlled electronic devices' :rolleyes:

However follow my advice above and you'll be grand.

I've been on 6 flights in the past 2 years. I've used discman's, iPods and other mp3 players and the only time I was told to turn it off was at take off and landing.

sliabh

I was sitting on a flight from Munich last night and the American in the aisle seat next to me was listening to his cd player. He left it out on his jacket on the empty middle seat and the crew didn't say anything to him.

I was listening to MP3s from my Palm. Both of us were were desperate to drown out the noise of the electronic toy being used by the toddler in the seats behind us (who also was kicking my seat). It's devices like that, that create a load of noise everyone has to listen to that should be banned.

RicardoSmith

sliabh wrote:

....It's devices like that, that create a load of noise everyone has to listen to that should be banned.

I've been saying that about Kids for years.. ...but I'm getting my own back now I'm bringing my own... :eek:

sliabh

RicardoSmith wrote:

I've been saying that about Kids for years.. ...but I'm getting my own back now I'm bringing my own... :eek:

Well they are endangering aircraft safety. I am being encouraged to violence by them!

robinph

Jimeatsmenu wrote:

I've been on 6 flights in the past 2 years. I've used discman's, iPods and other mp3 players and the only time I was told to turn it off was at take off and landing.

I think that the take off and landing ruling is more to do with you needing to be aware of what is happening if there is an emergency than anything to do with interfering with any electronics in the cockpit.

sliabh

robinph wrote:

I think that the take off and landing ruling is more to do with you needing to be aware of what is happening if there is an emergency than anything to do with interfering with any electronics in the cockpit.

And to make sure there are no trip hazards and obstructions in the event people have to leg it out of the plane. Well the survivors anyway

magpie

Would it be too much to ask for everyone to sit down, shut up, not wander around the plane, not listen to music, watch DVDs and generally do what you're told on a flight? The worst part about flying is the other passengers.

I'd much prefer to fly if they just gave everyone a glass of milk Mr T style, and everyone woke up at their destination.

RicardoSmith

5th Element style.....!

secret_squirrel

Was on an aerlingus flight on friday - they have changed the announcement to 'Laser Controlled electronic devices may be used midflight but not during take off and landing'. Happily listened to my Zen all the way across

davej

The fact that they don't strictly enforce the no mobiles rule says to me that it's not a risk. I've been on a number of flights where people have left their mobiles on in the overhead compartment and you can hear them receiving sms messages as we come in for landing. The air hostesses dont even bat an eyelid. If it were a genuine risk, they would ban them from carry on luggage. They are either a risk or they aren't. Why don't they allow dynamite on the plane but just ask passengers not to light it ?

The whole thing is silly really. The only reason that laptops were allowed over other "laser" equipment is because big business would be up in arms if it were prohibited.

davej

davej

heh, just came across this cartoon..



davej