Tennessee lawmakers pushed back against the possibility of...
Tennessee lawmakers pushed back against the possibility of airline passengers chatting on their cellphones while in the air. Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., threatened to drop a bill stopping the FCC from authorizing the change. The FCC is expected to vote…
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on an NPRM on the topic at its December meeting and has defended the move as a technical one (CD Nov 25 p1). Airlines can still regulate whether passengers can talk on their cellphones, according to the FCC. “The FCC commissioners will earn the gratitude of the two million Americans who fly each day by deciding: text messages, yes; conversations, no,” Alexander said in a statement (http://1.usa.gov/1dyNBwr). He described at length passengers “trapped” and listening to “yapping,” a situation in which “the Transportation Security Administration would have to hire three times as many air marshals to deal with the fistfights.” Meanwhile, Rep. Steve Cohen, D-Tenn., circulated a letter to colleagues Monday requesting that the Federal Aviation Administration maintain the ban on cellphone talking. “I invite you to join me in sending a letter to the Federal Aviation Administration urging that it maintain its ban on cell phone calls in flight regardless of whatever decision the FCC may make,” Cohen said. He said allowing cellphone calls will make flying less safe and create a “markedly less pleasant flying experience.”