British Airways is about to do something most airlines have long avoided: allow passengers to make voice and video calls onboard. Predictably, the reaction has been swift and overwhelmingly negative. But my reaction is different.
British Airways Will Allow Inflight Calls…And That’s Not Necessarily A Bad Thing
With the rollout of Starlink Wi-Fi, British Airways is joining a very small club of airlines willing to tolerate inflight voice and video calls. While most carriers still ban them outright, BA is taking a different approach: calls are allowed, but passengers are asked to “be considerate,” keep their voices low, and use headphones.
For years, airlines have restricted calls not because they could not support them, but because they feared exactly what many are now warning about: a cabin filled with loud, one-sided conversations. And yet, I am not convinced this is the disaster many are predicting.
This debate is not new. Nearly a decade ago, I pushed back on the idea that inflight calls would destroy the passenger experience. In a 2016 post, I argued that the issue was not the act of calling itself, but how people behave.
I remember going back and forth with Henry Harteveldt on this very point on NPR. The assumption was that passengers would be unable to regulate themselves. Maybe that is true in some cases, but it is hardly unique to phone calls. We already tolerate plenty of noise onboard.
The Real Problem Isn’t Calls
Let’s be honest about what actually bothers people. It is not someone quietly speaking into a phone. That is functionally no different than talking to a seatmate.
The real problems are:
- Speaking loudly
- Not using headphones
- Ignoring basic etiquette
And those problems already exist.
We have all been on flights with passengers watching videos without headphones or carrying on loud conversations across rows. Those behaviors are far more disruptive than a phone call.
I wrote about this recently after a FaceTime incident onboard United, where the issue was not the call itself, but how it was conducted (although the call itself was not allowed, per United policy). That is where conflict arises.
My Own Experience
I have flown on JSX, where inflight connectivity makes calls possible, and it was not an issue. I have also flown on carriers like Emirates and Qatar Airways, which have not strictly prohibited calls, and again, it was not the chaos many predict.
In practice, most people do not want to broadcast their conversations to a cabin full of strangers.
There is a natural social pressure to behave. Yes, there will be outliers (there always are). But we already deal with those outliers in other contexts onboard. I just don’t see it as a huge problem, naive as some of you may find that viewpoint.
But if airlines are going to allow calls, they need to be willing to step in when passengers abuse that privilege. That means telling someone to lower their voice and always requiring headphones.
And yes, that may lead to more onboard confrontations. But that does not have to be the case if antisocial behavior is not tolerated.
CONCLUSION
British Airways is poised to allow passengers to conduct calls while using Starlink Internet onboard. The issue has never been about calls themselves, but whether passengers can behave like adults in a shared space.
Most can. Some will not…just like when talking to a seatmate or watching TikTok without headphones. Bottom line, I don’t predict an uptick fistfights onboard…it’s going to be just fine.
> Read More: Here’s Why I Support In-Flight Cell Phone Calls
“There is a natural social pressure to behave. Yes, there will be outliers ”
Time will tell. This site is already full of examples of the outliers and entitlement is everywhere, so I’m less optimistic that people will self-regulate.
No one, short of the President of a country needs to be on a phone during a flight unless an emergency is happening. Yes, this does have disaster written all over it because people can’t follow basic decency.
In the unfortunate event a personal tragedy happens, the person should take the phone to the restroom and complete the call. But this is a rare occurrence.
Anything that gives people another option to be rude and disruptive of us isn’t a good thing in any way to me. I’m old enough to remember phones in the back of seats that were used during 9/11. In spite of that they were removed.
The good news is you will be getting more material for stories when the inevitable arguments and fights happen.
What’s up with this coordinated push by all the Boarding Area affiliates to push this idea recently? Seems like a bad idea, for keeping the peace, on board.
Sorry, but under no circumstances can I see this as a good idea. Loud, entitled morons in every class of service will abuse the privilege and make what is already a miserable experience even worse.
Matthew is all wrong once more. Likely he has never flown Qatar Airways despite pumping us all the credit cards enabling travel on a Q-Suite. Lack of exeprience shows again.
Let me get that loud and clear for those of you hard of hearing:
NOISE CANCELLING HEADPHONES CANCEL BEST BACKGROUND NOISE BUT HAVE A TENDANCY TO ISOLATE HUMAN VOICE AS A RESULT. THEREFORE, THE GUY SITTING BEHIND AND RUNNING AN INDIAN CALL CENTER USING STARLINK, EVEN IF MINDFUL, WILL BE MORE AUDIBLE AND MORE DISTRACTING WITH A NOISE CANCELLING HEADPHONE THAN WITHOUT IF HIS/HER VOICE WAS DILUTED WITH ENGINE NOISE. IT IS EVEN WORSE AS A MATTER OF FACT.
As a result, Matthew wants to destroy your experience on the aspirational tickets and cabins he keeps advertising for you when pumping his credit card referrals. What ‘s the point of a lie flat bed when you can;t sleep because teh guy behind is running a call center. Even worse, when the guy behinds becomes agitated because his employees are not doing what he wants.
What a lack of foresight. What is the volume that will be too loud for speaking? Who will be the loud-speaking police? Who will be enforcing community standards? None. FA will be playing candy crush while you can’t rest.
Just what I want. I fall asleep on a TATL flight (a rarity for me) and a nearby Bozo “needs” to call his wife because he can. “Hey, honey, guess where I’m calling from. Let’s have a pointless half hour conversation.” Yes, I know people can talk to a wife next to them. But, in my experience those folks respect others better than those on phones.
This indulgent approach could lead to demands for “quiet zones” on flights and create difficulties for cabin crew in enforcing acceptable behaviour… Let’s wait and see what happens!
I’m ok with this as long as we are also now permitted to beat up other passengers during the flight.