First mobile call from commercial airline made

"Honey - I'm somewhere in between Dubai and Casablanca"


27 March 2008 14:35 GMT / By Katie Scott

Ofcom has just approved plans for mobile phone use in European airspace but the world first for a mid air conversation goes to a passenger jetting off in sunnier climes.

While European passengers will have to wait for plans to be approved by Ofcom, Emirates reports that the first permitted mobile phone call from a commercial plane was made on a flight between Dubai and Casablanca.

The aircraft was an Airbus A340, which is fitted with a system which stops mobiles from interfering with a plane's electronics.

The Dubai-based airline is now going to roll out the voice call service throughout its fleet but they will be restricted on night flights.

And passengers will be asked to keep their phones on silent.

Emirates also plans to extend the system to include BlackBerrys and other data services.
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Full tags
Phones, Mobile phone industry, Biz, Ofcom, Emirates, BlackBerry

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