U.K. telecommunications regulator Ofcom will allow mobile-phone services on U.K.-registered aircraft if airlines get authorization from European aviation authorities.
The decision was developed with other European Union countries, Ofcom said today in a Regulatory News Service statement. The European Aviation Safety Agency and the U.K.'s Civil Aviation Authority will need to authorize the systems before they can be installed, the regulator said.
The Ofcom announcement comes less than a week after the first authorized in-flight mobile-phone call on a commercial flight took place -- on an Emirates flight from Dubai to Casablanca, according to London-based satellite operator Inmarsat Plc. The call was sent over Inmarsat's satellite network.
Calls will be routed via satellites, Ofcom said. The on- board networks and handsets will be switched off during take-off and landing to ensure they do not interfere with other networks.
Calls from aircraft will be billed through passengers' service providers, Ofcom said.
Carriers such as Ryanair Holdings Plc, Europe's biggest discount airline, are looking to ancillary services including wireless phone offerings to boost revenue as ticket prices slide. In February, Ryanair said onboard tests of mobile-phone services would begin in April.
Qantas and Air France are testing mobile-phone services, Inmarsat said in a statement today.
source : http://www.bloomberg.com/
Mobile Phones UK
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