Heard on Air France flight: “Can you hear me now?”

By Giselle Abramovich

December 21, 2007

OnAir does not interfere with the radio-navigation instruments on flights

Sacre bleu! Air France has gone mobile.

The French airline is running an in-flight trial mobile phone service on international flights exclusively for Airbus A318 passengers. Using OnAir’s mobile system, passengers can call, send and receive emails and exchange SMS and MMS messages while 33,000 feet in the air.

“We are delighted that Air France is the first airline to use the Mobile OnAir onboard mobile telephony system on international flights,” OnAir CEO Benoit Debains said in a statement.

While some may be happy with the calling functionality, others may not. So Air France will monitor incoming and outgoing calls while in-flight.

At the end of the six-month trial, the airline will consider user feedback and comments to gauge whether to extend this service on all its flights.

The Mobile OnAir onboard mobile telephony system does not interfere with the radio-navigation instruments on flights. The system is activated at 31,000 feet.

An in-flight communications joint venture between SITA and Airbus, OnAir has roaming agreements with wireless carriers such as Orange, Bouygues Telecom and SFR.

How does it work?

Mobile phones connect to a small cellular network installed inside the aircraft.

A modem transmits data and calls to a satellite that routes them to a ground station. Data and calls are then routed to the passenger’s usual phone network. This network is located inside the aircraft.

“This marks an important phase in the implementation of a new generation of in-flight services,” Mr. Debains stated, “and we are confident that this trial will define the future standards in terms of in-flight passenger communication.”