Decision making too hard
Amazing news from the US:
The Federal Communications Commission has officially grounded the idea of allowing airline passengers to use cellular telephones while in flight.
Existing rules require cellular phones to be turned off once an aircraft leaves the ground in order to avoid interfering with cellular network systems on the ground. The agency began examining the issue in December 2004.
...
In an order released Tuesday, the FCC noted that there was "insufficient technical information" available on whether airborne cell phone calls would jam networks on the ground.
It takes more than two years for a bunch of government employees (with employment benefits many Americans can only dream about) to make decision that they cannot make decision. And therefore leave restrictions in place. The restrictions that are wrongly presented to us the airline customers as a safety measure (responsible for the flight safety is another authority, the Federal Aviation Administration).
It probably would be cheaper for American taxpayers to finance full-scale testing, with cell networks and airplanes stuffed with hundreds of active mobile phones flying above those somewhere in Arizona desert. But apparently the government bureaucrats aren't interested in making decisions based on facts. That's sad.