Mobile Phone Free Zones

[SeatBackForward]

You would bs surprised - I was at a restaurant recently and someone was in the mens room in one of the cubicles no less talking on his phone.

Just to defend mobile users a little - I often find that the Qantas lounge is the one few minutes of peace and quiet that I can have to gather my thoughts and then speak to people about things that in my rush around the office and out of the house through traffic to the airport I havent had a chance.

I do try to keep the volume down as much as I can - I am not deaf and I dont want to make the people at the end of the phone deaf And the reason I turn my phone on as soon as I land is to assure my wife that the plane hasnt crashed and I have landed (with some assistance from the pilot) safely

Or you could send a text message.

 

[duffshot]

Nice post

Its important to spurt off as many TLA's as possible to sound more "business like". The other phenomena on a plane I always enjoy watching is the ritual "taking off and putting back on" of the suit jackets.

Yes you do need to block the aisle while you ooze testosterone removing that manly suit jacket of yours. And all the passengers need to watch you do it, its more important than those floozy hosties with their safety yada-yada.

But seriously..were they not expecting to be getting on the plane? it suddenly appeared and they mysteriously were on it? or was the lack of Antarctic conditions in the plane a pleasant surprise?

I'm one of these whackers but I do try and stand in front of my seat to remove my jacket once on board. The reason I don't take it off prior is that it's the easiest way to carry the bloody thing with a laptop bag and a carry on.... Nice to know you are watching though SeatBackForward. I might try and do it a little more erotically next time

 

[Yada Yada]

Yes you do need to block the aisle while you ooze testosterone removing that manly suit jacket of yours. And all the passengers need to watch you do it, its more important than those floozy hosties with their safety yada-yada.

But seriously..were they not expecting to be getting on the plane? it suddenly appeared and they mysteriously were on it? or was the lack of Antarctic conditions in the plane a pleasant surprise?

Well, I'm one of those guys who often takes his suit jacket off after boarding. Although I always wait until there is no-one trying to get down the aisle so that I am not blocking the way.

The reason I don't take always take off my jacket until after boarding is simple - I am usually carrying my briefcase in one hand and my BP in the other. If I have removed my jacket prior to boarding then I struggle trying to hand over my BP (or hold it up to be scanned/viewed). And as I have generally just passed through security where I have had to remove my laptop computer, mobile phone, wallet etc, it is much easier to leave my jacket on and have one less thing to put through the x-ray machine and struggle with airside.

 

[SeatBackForward]

Nice to know you are watching though SeatBackForward. I might try and do it a little more erotically next time

Hey you might be more interesting than the mob that Qantas seem to use these days. Do they ever smile anymore?

 

[SeatBackForward]

Well, I'm one of those guys who often takes his suit jacket off after boarding. Although I always wait until there is no-one trying to get down the aisle so that I am not blocking the way.

Backpacks!

I remember seeing some guy with his computer backpack walking down the aisle, and turning as he approached his seat. Now the thing with backpacks is that you really need one of them "Do Not Overtake Turning Vehicle" signs stuck on the back..

*whack* one way
"oh oops sorry" *turn*
*whack* the other way...

 

[Yada Yada]

Backpacks!

I like the backpacks although they don't look that good with a suit & tie. And as you said, they can be a danger in confined spaces!

 

[simongr]

Or you could send a text message.

I do - but I do need to turn on my phone to send an sms I dont actually call from the tarmac - normally just when I am walking into the arrivals area to advise what my first impressions of the new place I am visiting for the first time are...

Sadly now I have been provided with a blackberry so I will be one of those madly emailing on the taxiway but I cant possibly wait until I am in the cab...

 

[Reggie]

I do - but I do need to turn on my phone to send an sms I dont actually call from the tarmac - normally just when I am walking into the arrivals area to advise what my first impressions of the new place I am visiting for the first time are...

Sadly now I have been provided with a blackberry so I will be one of those madly emailing on the taxiway but I cant possibly wait until I am in the cab...

At least it is the taxi way and not the runaway and takeoff.

 

[simongr]

At least it is the taxi way and not the runaway and takeoff.

Nah on the runway I am too busy get my hand luggage down from the overhead locker

 

[Reggie]

Nah on the runway I am too busy get my hand luggage down from the overhead locker

Your based in the US then.

 

[simongr]

Nah if I was based in the US I would be taking a case big enough to hide a small phillipino family in and after the cabin creew had explicitly told everyone that no more roll aboards were allowed I would do my best to stuff it under the seat in front despite the fact that I was 6'2" tall and then had to hunch like a moron for the entire flight (I saw it a couple of weeks ago and couldnt believe how the people arrived late and just ignored the cabin crew :evil: )

 

[bigjobs]

Nah if I was based in the US I would be taking a case big enough to hide a small phillipino family in and after the cabin creew had explicitly told everyone that no more roll aboards were allowed I would do my best to stuff it under the seat in front despite the fact that I was 6'2" tall and then had to hunch like a moron for the entire flight (I saw it a couple of weeks ago and couldnt believe how the people arrived late and just ignored the cabin crew :evil: )

just goes to show that you get what you tolerate. if it was my airline ...

 

[Reggie]

Nah if I was based in the US I would be taking a case big enough to hide a small phillipino family in and after the cabin creew had explicitly told everyone that no more roll aboards were allowed I would do my best to stuff it under the seat in front despite the fact that I was 6'2" tall and then had to hunch like a moron for the entire flight (I saw it a couple of weeks ago and couldnt believe how the people arrived late and just ignored the cabin crew :evil: )

As Australian based travellers, isn't it amusing to watch the yanks try and take everything they can on as hand luggage. Luckily on my DONE4, I was in First so I always had overhead space. Watching other pax get on with 2 or 3 pieces of luggage then complaining that they cant get all their luggage into the lockers is comical. This is dispite the FA's constantly announcing "due to the plane being completely full today, can those pax with more than one piece of luggage please place the smaller pieces under the seat in front of you. It really is every pax for themsleves over there.

Even funnier is when we get some yankie collegues over and even after been warned by us, they try and take a rollaboard and another bag onto a crash8 as hand luggage.

 

[Kiwi Flyer]

That may be slowly changing thanks to the current restrictions. My US flight the other day had similar amounts of carryon luggage as a typical australia/nz domestic flight. Plenty of overhead space. Many pax with no carryon at all. And best of all boarding only took 15 minutes so made some time from the late arrival of the a/c.

 

[Maca44]

The worst part about it is when you are sitting in an aisle seat, and they walk past carrying their three bags (ususally not small ones either). However, I put the blame on the carrier as they should stop them at the gate and check the bags over the required quota. I'm off to the USA again on Wednesday with a connecting dom flight so hopefully it has changed for the better with carry on restrictions.

 

[simongr]

This is dispite the FA's constantly announcing "due to the plane being completely full today, can those pax with more than one piece of luggage please place the smaller pieces under the seat in front of you.

I actually found when I was doing day trips to Dubbo and carying only a small laptop bag that chucking the bag under the seat in front wasnt too bad actually - which given I am 6'2" tall was quite surprising to me