bmi launches in-flight communications trial, voice gratefully excluded

We all know how the British hate lagging behind the French, so it's no shock to see bmi following Air France in the in-flight communications game. The airline has just announced that it will soon launch a six month trial of the OnAir service, though not surprisingly, voice calls will not be a part of said run. Instead, users in a single A320 making loops from London to Moscow will be able to send text messages whilst airborne, and in case that's too boring, users with GSM data cards will also be able to hop online. There's no mention of a VoIP ban, but given the clear anti-voice stance, we doubt the kind attendants would let you chatter long before giving you the evil eye.

[dcoaster Posted Dec 15th 2008 8:45PM]

I WANT TO BE LOW RANKED!

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 8:53PM]

Do excuse me, good sir.

But is there any particular reason why you seem to be doing it wrong?

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:14PM]

hahahahahaha
it's funny because people ranked him high, even though he wanted to be ranked me low

yeah, rank me low for ruining the joke be explaining it. That was the point.

[loocas Posted Dec 16th 2008 6:33AM]

@ dandaman

Nope, I reported your comment...

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 8:47PM]

Lol BMI,
I wonder if they give free seats to people with a hight....

[loocas Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:04PM]

:D

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 8:48PM]

Then the best option is just to leave you at Neutral

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 8:49PM]

Sorry directed at dcoaster. Damn you comment system!

[dcoaster Posted Dec 15th 2008 8:50PM]

That would be no fun...

But next year will probably be a big year for rolling out in-flight WiFi.

[TJx Posted Dec 15th 2008 8:53PM]

I still think it's insane we have in-flight WiFi...... who would have thought.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:02PM]

BMI = Bowel Movement Investigation?
No thanks... I like to keep that stuff to myself.


Not really.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:14PM]

I'm pretty sure it's body mass index, not many people seem to know that!

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:15PM]

I'm pretty sure it's a british airline...

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:16PM]

Psh! Yeah right, that's like saying IBM doesn't stand for Instant Bowel Movement!

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:19PM]

@dandaman

Ok, now THAT is crazytalk.

[Peytral Posted Dec 15th 2008 10:52PM]

@bill's reply

that made me giggle

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:07PM]

this reminds me of that time in zabu land................................

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 16th 2008 12:12AM]

yes?

[gonintendo Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:09PM]

The body mass index (BMI), or Quetelet index, is a statistical measurement which compares a person's weight and height. Though it does not actually measure the percentage of body fat, it is a useful tool to estimate a healthy body weight based on how tall a person is. Due to its ease of measurement and calculation, it is the most widely used diagnostic tool to identify obesity problems within a population. However, it is not considered appropriate to use as a final indication for diagnosing individuals.[1] It was invented between 1830 and 1850 by the Belgian polymath Adolphe Quetelet during the course of developing "social physics".[2]

Body mass index is defined as the individual's body weight divided by the square of their height. The formulas universally used in medicine produce a unit of measure of kg/m2:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Body_mass_index

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:14PM]

hahahahahahahahaha.......chinese democracy

sorry i can't respect you with that picture.

[gonintendo Posted Dec 15th 2008 10:58PM]

[insert witty comeback here]

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:13PM]

i have to disagree with your commwnt about the british. Ryanair was the first to use the service throughtout europe not the french. See http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/travel/news/article4817336.ece

[ROFL Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:22PM]

What comment?

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:27PM]

Don't the English hate lagging behind the Irish even more? :P

[avirji Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:15PM]

Next stop: Enhanced Wi-Fi on the Emirates A380 *drool

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:25PM]

What is the subject matter of this trial? :) Is it whether the plane will be subject to technical problems? If it is the case then doing such a trial with live passengers is totally criminal.... I would not want to be in that plane:)

If it is not the case then the reason why cell communications were prohibited remains a mystery ... In both cases the affair contains some absurdities...

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:36PM]

Cell phones cause a lot more disturbance than Wi-Fi. If you take a gsm phone (T-Mobile or AT&T) and hold it by a speaker it will make really loud beeping/buzzing noises. Wi-Fi seems to be much safer and less disruptive, especially considering that they could control whether it was on/off, and possibly even the range that it extends.

Nonetheless, I am sure they ran at least a dozen test flights prior to accepting passengers. Riding in this plane would probably (still) be safer than driving to your next destination. Please enjoy your flight ;).

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 16th 2008 12:13AM]

and staring at the flight attendant's ass.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:27PM]

Darren's comment about the British in his article summary.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 16th 2008 7:46AM]

But Ryanair isn't a British Airline?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryanair

WTF.. quit claiming our stuff already

[Eternal Density Posted Dec 15th 2008 9:32PM]

But we can still pretend to talk on our shoephones and watch comms, right?

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 15th 2008 10:58PM]

What worries me is that the Mythbusters did do a test, and they came to the conclusion that cellphones do interfer with airplanes navigating systems!

[dosguy Posted Dec 16th 2008 12:26AM]

If a cellphone won't cause interference, then I guess a cellphone jammer wouldn't cause any either, right? Not that I would ever consider bringing a jammer on board...I'm just sayin'.

[(Unverified) Posted Dec 16th 2008 12:58AM]

Thank you for flying Body Mass Index airlines