Why is it that when ur in an airplane, you have to turn off your cell phones or electronic devices until you are at least a specific amount high in the air?

They’re thought to interfere with the plane’s navigational and control systems.

I read that there is a very slight chance that what GD Kimble says will happen, but they don’t want to risk it with a plane carrying so many people. Some phones have “airplane mode” as in they don’t transmit anything, but stay on.

So your devices dont get ruined from the force of pressure

@love408: the airplane cabin is pressurized, so I don’t see how that is possible. I think the FAA rule is there to mitigate any unwanted radio transmissions that could interfere with radio tower contact and between other inbound/outbound aircraft…reduce the “chatter and crosstalk” associated with radio-based communications.

O really well thats what i assumed!
so….

Some of it must be that they want you to be able to hear the flight attendants if they need to announce something and the most likely time to need to communicate anything is on take off or landing.

It’s as sndfreQ said, it’s prevent accidental interference with communication channels between the plane and the tower. During take-off and landing, especially, as these times don’t allow for much playing to find a clear channel.

Have you ever seen this warning on electronic devices:

“This device may not cause harmful interference. This device must accept any interference received, including interference that may cause undesired operation.”

Part 15 of FCC rules requires this behavior for all devices that accept or transmit radio frequencies – whether the transmission of those radio waves is intentional or not. This means that should any device carried by a passenger onboard the plane malfunction, it could potentially cause communication problems.

This isn’t much of a problem in the air, as pilots can make adjustments or ask the cabin to turn off all devices if a problem persists. During take-off and landing, however, even a small squawk could cause a problem. The last thing you want is Junior’s Playstation Portable causing static on the line as your plane jets down the runway.

So, even if the FAA relaxes the rules on cellphone use in-flight, it’s unlikely that we’d be able to use any devices during take-off or landing.