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Meanwhile they allow hundreds of relatively high power RF transmitters (passengers' phones) onboard. I call humbug.

minikites 12y ago
Right, my point is that this new device has to be tolerant of radiation from passengers' phones, increased radiation from space, etc
- johansch 12y ago
  And what happens if it isn't? And how would be this be any worse than no device at all?
  - minikites 12y ago
    The device recording plane data is presumably connected to important plane systems to record them. Can data/electricity only flow one way? Are you sure?
    - zaphar 12y ago
      Why? for location data all they need is GPS. If you know location you find the black box which has the telemetry data. Is there a reason a location tracker can't be self contained with it's own power supply and no connections to a plane's telemetry feed?
      - minikites 12y ago
        If you do that, the next time there's a crash like Air France 447, you'll see rending of garments and crappy articles like this (again) saying "Why have a black box when you can just transmit the data?!?!?!" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_France_Flight_447#Underwater_search http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_France_Flight_447#Underwate... > French Bureau d'Enquetes et d'Analyses (BEA) chief Paul-Louis Arslanian said that he was not optimistic about finding them since they might have been under as much as 3,000 m (9,800 ft) of water and the terrain under this portion of the ocean was very rugged. Although France had never recovered a flight recorder from such depths, there was precedent for such an operation. Crashed: June 2009 Black boxes found: May 2011
        marcosdumay 12y ago
        Notice that the AF447 had great telemetry reporting its position right before the accident. Searching for things at the sea bottom is simply hard.
saryant 12y ago
My phone doesn't connect to the aircraft's avionics. Big difference.
- jacquesm 12y ago
  Not directly. But the field emanating from your phone will induce a current in the wiring of the plane if it isn't properly shielded to account for that. So even if there is no physical connection there could still be a resulting interruption in communications. All it takes is a crappy or un-intended ground point somewhere along the signal path or at either end. One way in which I would stress test new electronics designs for resistance to such interference was to stick a mobile phone on top of it and then call that number. Worked like a charm most of the times: instant crash.
wtbob 12y ago
Which they didn't allow until recently. And of course a system like this would almost certainly be tied into the airplane's avionics and communications systems, and possibly also its power system. It really does have to be tested more than one might expect.

Right, my point is that this new device has to be tolerant of radiation from passengers' phones, increased radiation from space, etc

johansch 12y ago
And what happens if it isn't? And how would be this be any worse than no device at all?
- minikites 12y ago
  The device recording plane data is presumably connected to important plane systems to record them. Can data/electricity only flow one way? Are you sure?
  - zaphar 12y ago
    Why? for location data all they need is GPS. If you know location you find the black box which has the telemetry data. Is there a reason a location tracker can't be self contained with it's own power supply and no connections to a plane's telemetry feed?
    - minikites 12y ago
      If you do that, the next time there's a crash like Air France 447, you'll see rending of garments and crappy articles like this (again) saying "Why have a black box when you can just transmit the data?!?!?!" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_France_Flight_447#Underwater_search http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_France_Flight_447#Underwate... > French Bureau d'Enquetes et d'Analyses (BEA) chief Paul-Louis Arslanian said that he was not optimistic about finding them since they might have been under as much as 3,000 m (9,800 ft) of water and the terrain under this portion of the ocean was very rugged. Although France had never recovered a flight recorder from such depths, there was precedent for such an operation. Crashed: June 2009 Black boxes found: May 2011
      - marcosdumay 12y ago
        Notice that the AF447 had great telemetry reporting its position right before the accident. Searching for things at the sea bottom is simply hard.

saryant 12y ago

My phone doesn't connect to the aircraft's avionics. Big difference.

jacquesm 12y ago
Not directly. But the field emanating from your phone will induce a current in the wiring of the plane if it isn't properly shielded to account for that. So even if there is no physical connection there could still be a resulting interruption in communications. All it takes is a crappy or un-intended ground point somewhere along the signal path or at either end. One way in which I would stress test new electronics designs for resistance to such interference was to stick a mobile phone on top of it and then call that number. Worked like a charm most of the times: instant crash.

wtbob 12y ago

Which they didn't allow until recently. And of course a system like this would almost certainly be tied into the airplane's avionics and communications systems, and possibly also its power system. It really does have to be tested more than one might expect.