( is new fleet of 150 Airbus A320s. All ...)'Hi, can You Hear Me? I'm at 30,000 Feet',Health

is new fleet of 150 Airbus A320s. All planes are to be equipped by 2013, with the first connected aircraft serving routes in the next 18 months to two years. "We firmly believe that offering our clients the ability to communicate during flight is vital in this era of information technology," said Kamarudin Meranun, deputy chief executive of the group.

Lake, however, acknowledges that the idea of mobile phones being used in the confined space of an airliner risks making talkative travellers a serious threat to peace. "One wouldn't necessarily want to be sat next to someone who talked for the whole flight," he said. "But the cabin crew have control over the system. If an aircraft is flying overnight, they can decide to de-activate it for example." The service can be shut down to prevent calls, or partially de-activated to allow only text messages or BlackBerry use. For technical reasons, it will only be available above 3,000 metres (9,000 feet), which is achieved four minutes after takeoff and maintained until 10 minutes before landing.

If a sense of consideration for fellow passengers does not promote respectful phone use, then the connection price is likely to compel all but the wealthiest travellers to make calls with moderation. Lake believes the average price will be about 2.50 dollars (1.9 euros) per minute for calls and about 50 cents per SMS message.

The revenue will be split three ways between OnAir, the user's mobile phone operator and, crucially, the airline itself. The contribution to the airline makes the idea of the technology particularly appealing to low-cost operators, whose businesses are based on generating cash from sources other than ticket sales. "We think it will be very popular with low-cost airline and the example of Ryanair taking the lead is very telling. "What those airlines are looking for is ancillary revenues so they can drive their fares down and stay competitive."

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