On a recent flight, for the first time, I watched an air hostess actually enforce the “turn your phone onto flight mode, then turn it completely off” two-step masquerade.
When I’m sitting idly during those few minutes at the start and end of every flight when everything electronic is out-of-bounds I like to imagine how it would be if my humble iPhone actually could magically connect and interfere with the planes navigation systems, as they claim. You could have some real fun with that, eh!
Do you think, if there was even a remote possibility that this was possible, they would let you have the phones onboard, and (most of the time) just trust you to do the right thing? Or would everything electronic be confiscated at security along with the nail clippers and 125mL bottles of deodorant?
And, who is “they” in that previous question anyway?
Wouldn’t it be so much better for everybody if we were honest. We could simply say: “it’s safer if you have stuff like that put away during take off and landing so that everything is clear in case of emergency”, although that would force us to address the reality that a book or newspaper is just as distracting or dangerous as a Kindle if an evacuation was required.
Then again, this kind of misinformation is pretty harmless, right? It’s all part of the security theatre that is now an ingrained part of travelling. Just turn off your phone and don’t make a fuss.
While you’re waiting, maybe you can read an interesting article about the two sides of the global warming debate or the risks associated with the MMR immunisation?
Anyway, enough cynicism .. I hope you all have a good long weekend. Think about why it is you have a couple of days off work and enjoy the goodies the magical bunny delivered.
“Security theatre” – says it all really. A lot of this is just about making people ‘feel’ safer, not actually making them safer.