We've been hearing a lot about all the data service offerings that’ll grant airline passengers to get their data-fix while in-flight, so it's refreshing to here of some developments regarding in-flight voice calls. Following on Norwegian Air's plan to offer in-flight voice calls and world wide web services through its Call Norwegian venture, the Office of Communications (OfCom, the UK equivalent to the US FCC) has announced that it will grant lofty voice calls from UK-registered airplanes later this year. The OfCom decision is still pending European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). OfCom states that the approval was granted in cooperation with other EU countries and will eventually grant in-flight cellphone calls throughout the EU.

The UK plan grants airline passengers to make in-flight mobile phone calls with their cellphone. The signal will be routed through an on-board cellular base station (ensuring that no communication between handset and ground base stations interfere with a plane's avionics), and wireless minutes will be billed as usual through the passenger's wireless operator. Incoming and outgoing calls can be made once the plane reaches a minimum altitude of 3,000 feet, and calls will be prohibited during take-off and landing procedures.

“The safety of passengers is paramount and mobile systems on aircraft will only be installed when they have secured approval by the European Aviation Safety Bureau and the Civil Aviation Authority in the UK,” Ofcom stated.

So, where does the US stand on in-flight wireless calling? It stands on the other side of the room from OfCom and the EU - like some pre-pubescent boy scared of the EU's, shall we state, blossoming, wireless policies. The FCC and FAA have ruled that in-flight wireless calling is prohibited over US airspace, making for a bleak outlook on traditional in-flight cellular calls. At those of use outside the EU we'll have some in-flight data. Let's just hope that Aircell and the like don't restrict VoIP access through their data services.

[Via: Bloomberg]

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Related Articles at IntoMobile:

• European Union might be getting in-flight cellphone use soon
• FAA puts its foot down on in-flight cell phone calls - it ain't gonna happen
• Qantas in-flight email and SMS text messaging set to take off on domestic Australian flights
• UK: Ofcom announces it's plan to release spectrum (via auction) for Mobile TV
• US airlines prepping in-flight internet access for next week

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This entry was posted on Wednesday, March 26th, 2008 at 7:51 pm and is filed under Mobile. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.