No, however the FAA takes certain measures to ensure complete safety. Some MP3 players can produce signals. Especially in this day in age. Someone may think their MP3 on the iPhone is completely fine not knowing the phone is emitting a signal. This signal can interfere with the Pilot’s communication to and from the radio control tower. Chances are slim the plan witll crash, it will just disrupt their systems. References :
Definitely not. The whole iPods/ CD players/ etc messing with the plane’s electronics is bs. Mobile phones and wifi should be kept off to make sure there is no wireless interference, but iPods and such have no effect. Think about the thousands of electrical circuits on a plane- do you those cause problems for the plane? No. Why would a tiny little MP3 player? References :
WE have had that scare with portable dictating machines, electronic calculators, laptops, and every new electronic thing that has come around. In truth, if they radiate enough RF to confuse the plane’s navigation system, there could be a problem. But, that has been thought of and I’ll bet there is some sort of FCC approval on the back of the player. I wouldn’t worry, but it is the plane’s staff’s call, so if they say to turn it off then, right or wrong, off it must be. References :
uh no..this is a rumor gone wild. Also, the hospital thing is pretty silly nowadys too. I recently read an article (on Yahoo!..?) that said a study revealed that only a very miniscule % of cell phones or other personal electronics can adversely affect their equipment. It was something like less than 1%. Probably, the airplane thing is just some kind of silly rumor that came from the cell-phone stuff. References :
I work on military comm. radios and while i do understand how personal electronic devices do affect airplane electronics, I don’t see how a strong enough rf signal (given right frequency) emited from personal devices can be received within aircraft electronics to do any damage. References :
look if an aeroplane is designed to have redundant systems ie 2 flight cvontrol computers and a third as a spare, and is designed to fly through electrical storms, and has features to survive an EMP. I think a little 0.000002watts of transmitter power from a reluctance circuit on an MP3 player that has already been CE tested for use in cars with airbag and single systems with no redundacy and no screening and no EMP protection. However…
The transmitter power is sufficient to be able to trigger a tertiary device say located on or in a critical system being used by the aircafts navigation or flight computer during critical times of flight.
As such it is a defensive measure to prevent a third party detonation of a device brought onto the plane by a sympathetic employee or vice versa References :
OK. Here’s the deal… There is a microscopic chance than any one pocket calculator, MP3 device or cell phone could possibly radiate enough electrical interference to cause a problem with a modern airplane’s navigation or flight controls.
The concern is that there are HUNDREDS of new devices coming out every year and the FAA and the FCC don’t have the time or the funding to properly test them all to be absolutely sure they will not cause a problem.
It’s better to be safe than sorry. Especially when the lives of 100’s of people in the aircraft and on the ground are at risk. That’s why the flight attendants request that your turn off your electronic devices during landing and take-off. To me, it’s less of an inconvenience than having to take your shoes and belt off before walking through the metal detectors.
Oh… By the way… It’s not a decision or a whim of the aircraft crew. IT IS A FEDERAL LAW! If you fail to comply with the cabin attendant’s request you could be arrested and tried in FEDERAL COURT! References :
First of all, an iPod will not bring an airplane down. I’m not sure where you heard this, but it is pretty far out there.
The airlines require you to turn off your electronics that emit signals because it is an FCC regulation, that the FAA enforces.
The airplane I fly has all kinds of things that the pax can use for communication from within the cabin…airphones,etc.
They are made for the airplane…so the FCC and the FAA allow it.
But, anyway, back to your question. Unless it interferes with the pilots judgement and motor skills, your ipod will not crash the airplane…the ONLY thing that could possibly be impaired by a stray signal is the comm/nav systems…and these do not keep the airplane in the sky….good luck
Jonathan S
ATP-LRJET,HS-125
CFI/AGI References : 9 years of having all kinds of stray signals in my plane
No nothing will happen, I fly in a helicopter everyday (same instruments as in a plane). I leave my cell phone on and we have all kinds of big time electronic stuff on it does not cause any problems.
1. AM FM CD player
2. TV tuner
3. 3 TV cameras
4. TV switcher
5. 3 extra 450 radios
6. VCR
7. Bearcat scanner
8. microwave transmitter
The list goes on and on.
Most of this stuff was never designed to be in an aircraft and the FAA OK’s all of it. It is all in a news helicopter and there are 7 of us flying around NYC everyday without problems. References :
The trm "Bring the plane down" is just scaremongering from the likes of people reading National Enquirer, or the Sun, in UK.
A cellphone emits interference when in use, or when it hunts for a signal….just as when you are near a radio or HiFi and your phone hunts (Or a call is just coming into your phone)….you get that little pattern of bleeps in the loudspeakers…well, that bleep will be rattling round the Crew Headphones, and they could miss a vital instruction from control.
Mp3 players can also emit, but very slightly.
Another aspect is that during take-off & landing it is imperitive that you can hear instructions from the PA system should there be an emergency. You won’t hear them if there is a pair of earphones blasting out music. Or your on that all important business call. References :
The only thing that will crash a plane is "human error." Human judgment whether that be on the ground, in the air, maintenance mishap, pilots coming to work drunk, etc…can cause a chain of events leading to an accident. However, just one break in the chain can change the outcome. References : BS in Aviation Technology
More dumb answer’s. A MP3 player only play’s what is recorded on a digital disk, There are no RF frequencie’s involved in this so why are people on here still talking about a cellphone’s? And if you do have a phone with a MP3 player on it most of them if not all of them have a (airplane mode) to where no out going or incoming call’s can be made but you still have the convience of all your other feature’s on your phone. References :
November 1st, 2009 at 5:16 am
not while it’s on the ground but they tell u when to turn it off and when to turn it on tho…
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 5:28 am
wow. thats scary.
where did you hear this?
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 6:14 am
No way………………
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 6:59 am
yeah. next time don’t play your mp3 player or your plane may crash.I’m serious.
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 7:46 am
Interesting statistic. Where did you get that from?
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 8:34 am
No, however the FAA takes certain measures to ensure complete safety. Some MP3 players can produce signals. Especially in this day in age. Someone may think their MP3 on the iPhone is completely fine not knowing the phone is emitting a signal. This signal can interfere with the Pilot’s communication to and from the radio control tower. Chances are slim the plan witll crash, it will just disrupt their systems.
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 9:03 am
Definitely not. The whole iPods/ CD players/ etc messing with the plane’s electronics is bs. Mobile phones and wifi should be kept off to make sure there is no wireless interference, but iPods and such have no effect. Think about the thousands of electrical circuits on a plane- do you those cause problems for the plane? No. Why would a tiny little MP3 player?
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 9:28 am
WE have had that scare with portable dictating machines, electronic calculators, laptops, and every new electronic thing that has come around. In truth, if they radiate enough RF to confuse the plane’s navigation system, there could be a problem. But, that has been thought of and I’ll bet there is some sort of FCC approval on the back of the player. I wouldn’t worry, but it is the plane’s staff’s call, so if they say to turn it off then, right or wrong, off it must be.
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 10:08 am
uh no..this is a rumor gone wild. Also, the hospital thing is pretty silly nowadys too. I recently read an article (on Yahoo!..?) that said a study revealed that only a very miniscule % of cell phones or other personal electronics can adversely affect their equipment. It was something like less than 1%. Probably, the airplane thing is just some kind of silly rumor that came from the cell-phone stuff.
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 10:54 am
I work on military comm. radios and while i do understand how personal electronic devices do affect airplane electronics, I don’t see how a strong enough rf signal (given right frequency) emited from personal devices can be received within aircraft electronics to do any damage.
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 11:06 am
No. But the regulations were created by people with minimal understanding of modern electronics.
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 11:17 am
look if an aeroplane is designed to have redundant systems ie 2 flight cvontrol computers and a third as a spare, and is designed to fly through electrical storms, and has features to survive an EMP. I think a little 0.000002watts of transmitter power from a reluctance circuit on an MP3 player that has already been CE tested for use in cars with airbag and single systems with no redundacy and no screening and no EMP protection. However…
The transmitter power is sufficient to be able to trigger a tertiary device say located on or in a critical system being used by the aircafts navigation or flight computer during critical times of flight.
As such it is a defensive measure to prevent a third party detonation of a device brought onto the plane by a sympathetic employee or vice versa
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 11:29 am
Heres proof if you need it look what happened to titanic when the band started up.
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 11:44 am
OK. Here’s the deal… There is a microscopic chance than any one pocket calculator, MP3 device or cell phone could possibly radiate enough electrical interference to cause a problem with a modern airplane’s navigation or flight controls.
The concern is that there are HUNDREDS of new devices coming out every year and the FAA and the FCC don’t have the time or the funding to properly test them all to be absolutely sure they will not cause a problem.
It’s better to be safe than sorry. Especially when the lives of 100’s of people in the aircraft and on the ground are at risk. That’s why the flight attendants request that your turn off your electronic devices during landing and take-off. To me, it’s less of an inconvenience than having to take your shoes and belt off before walking through the metal detectors.
Oh… By the way… It’s not a decision or a whim of the aircraft crew. IT IS A FEDERAL LAW! If you fail to comply with the cabin attendant’s request you could be arrested and tried in FEDERAL COURT!
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 12:19 pm
First of all, an iPod will not bring an airplane down. I’m not sure where you heard this, but it is pretty far out there.
The airlines require you to turn off your electronics that emit signals because it is an FCC regulation, that the FAA enforces.
The airplane I fly has all kinds of things that the pax can use for communication from within the cabin…airphones,etc.
They are made for the airplane…so the FCC and the FAA allow it.
But, anyway, back to your question. Unless it interferes with the pilots judgement and motor skills, your ipod will not crash the airplane…the ONLY thing that could possibly be impaired by a stray signal is the comm/nav systems…and these do not keep the airplane in the sky….good luck
Jonathan S
ATP-LRJET,HS-125
CFI/AGI
References :
9 years of having all kinds of stray signals in my plane
November 1st, 2009 at 1:03 pm
NO, not even remotely.
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 1:21 pm
no this is not true
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 1:45 pm
No nothing will happen, I fly in a helicopter everyday (same instruments as in a plane). I leave my cell phone on and we have all kinds of big time electronic stuff on it does not cause any problems.
1. AM FM CD player
2. TV tuner
3. 3 TV cameras
4. TV switcher
5. 3 extra 450 radios
6. VCR
7. Bearcat scanner
8. microwave transmitter
The list goes on and on.
Most of this stuff was never designed to be in an aircraft and the FAA OK’s all of it. It is all in a news helicopter and there are 7 of us flying around NYC everyday without problems.
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 2:05 pm
No it is a myth. It doesn’t affect the airplane in any way.
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 2:13 pm
JetDoc is the best answer.
The trm "Bring the plane down" is just scaremongering from the likes of people reading National Enquirer, or the Sun, in UK.
A cellphone emits interference when in use, or when it hunts for a signal….just as when you are near a radio or HiFi and your phone hunts (Or a call is just coming into your phone)….you get that little pattern of bleeps in the loudspeakers…well, that bleep will be rattling round the Crew Headphones, and they could miss a vital instruction from control.
Mp3 players can also emit, but very slightly.
Another aspect is that during take-off & landing it is imperitive that you can hear instructions from the PA system should there be an emergency. You won’t hear them if there is a pair of earphones blasting out music. Or your on that all important business call.
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 2:21 pm
The only thing that will crash a plane is "human error." Human judgment whether that be on the ground, in the air, maintenance mishap, pilots coming to work drunk, etc…can cause a chain of events leading to an accident. However, just one break in the chain can change the outcome.
References :
BS in Aviation Technology
November 1st, 2009 at 3:05 pm
More dumb answer’s. A MP3 player only play’s what is recorded on a digital disk, There are no RF frequencie’s involved in this so why are people on here still talking about a cellphone’s? And if you do have a phone with a MP3 player on it most of them if not all of them have a (airplane mode) to where no out going or incoming call’s can be made but you still have the convience of all your other feature’s on your phone.
References :
November 1st, 2009 at 3:11 pm
No…they only tell you to do that because you have to be on full attention for takeoff and landings because that’s when accidents mostly appen..!…..
Cell phones - interfere with the radios and GPS so you Carnot use them…!
References :