Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage • Hacker News Board

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#541

Post by johnwalkr » Sat, Oct 08, 2022, 9:46 AM UTC

rzimmerman wrote: post #298

nostrademons wrote: post #76

Note that the reason for airport mode is a courtesy to cell-phone carriers. It's not any air safety issue. Rather, 300-500 cell phones all trying to contact the next cell tower, multiple times per minute, would wreak havoc on cell service. https://www.inverse.com/article/51015-cell-phone-use-on-airp... At one point, when both cell phones and laptops were new, there was perhaps a risk to the airplane's electronics. Mo…

Switching your phone transmitter off is technically required by FCC regulations: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/chapter-I/subchapter-B... Realistically there isn't an issue with leaving a cell phone on and out of airplane mode going purely based on how many people forget or ignore the directions everyday and how infrequently there are problems. But I'll make two points: The idea that a cell phone transmitter c…

A few airlines (Etihad is one that comes to mind) operate mini cells on the plan and you can roam on a local 4G network and makes calls/use data. If I recall correctly it’s switched off on takeoff and landing but you can definitely use your phone on these flights.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#542

Post by cromka » Sat, Oct 08, 2022, 9:47 AM UTC

rzimmerman wrote: post #298

nostrademons wrote: post #76

Note that the reason for airport mode is a courtesy to cell-phone carriers. It's not any air safety issue. Rather, 300-500 cell phones all trying to contact the next cell tower, multiple times per minute, would wreak havoc on cell service. https://www.inverse.com/article/51015-cell-phone-use-on-airp... At one point, when both cell phones and laptops were new, there was perhaps a risk to the airplane's electronics. Mo…

Switching your phone transmitter off is technically required by FCC regulations: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/chapter-I/subchapter-B... Realistically there isn't an issue with leaving a cell phone on and out of airplane mode going purely based on how many people forget or ignore the directions everyday and how infrequently there are problems. But I'll make two points: The idea that a cell phone transmitter c…

> It probably makes sense to relax the rules,

I suppose this issue will actually fix itself with the advent of cheap Internet onboard the plane via WiFi, which combined with VoWiFi, will effectively switch cell off automatically when connected. People are more likely to use free WiFi onboard than to voluntarily remember to switch the Airplane Mode on.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#543

Post by jawadch93 » Sat, Oct 08, 2022, 9:48 AM UTC

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Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#544

Post by harha » Sat, Oct 08, 2022, 9:49 AM UTC

thaumasiotes wrote: post #537

mindslight wrote: post #365

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Your damages are what you had to spend on all the new items you had to buy for your trip, to replace the items they failed to deliver. You buy new clothes (etc), keep the receipts, and turn those in for reimbursement. At least this is how it worked a decade ago when my luggage was "lost" for a US domestic flight. In my case, I think they deliberately bumped my bag for paying cargo, because they saw my billing address…

aobdev's idea of reimbursement doesn't work in either direction. The price you paid for something is only weakly connected to the thing's current value. But your damages are equal to whatever the current value is. If you bought a painting for $20 and it's appreciated to $15,000, you're owed $15,000 when someone destroys it. If you bought a suit for $2,000 and it's more moth-hole than cloth and it's been through a few…

There’s an easy solution: the airline automatically owes the maximum amount. This would save everyone much time and put some burden back with the airliner (by potentially paying more than the customer had, though at around USD 1800 it should be quite even, especially once you consider the time spent to get your money back)

You already need to insure higher values anyway if you want to be entitled to a reimbursement, so this would set a nice minimum that encourages customer friendly behavior.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#545

Post by berkes » Sat, Oct 08, 2022, 9:50 AM UTC

Maxburn wrote: post #534

If you want better baggage treatment on airlines, just stick a gun in checked baggage. I have found that putting a gun in my checked baggage and declaring it gets my bag VERY special treatment. It gets special tagging and individual handling. Drop off in a special area. It doesn't go on the carousel, I have to go claim it with ID etc. Best part is this costs nothing. I know some photographers that learned this trick…

Try that in Europe. Or almost anywhere not US though, and you'll very likely won't be able to access your luggage due to being detained in some cell.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#546

Post by Sporktacular » Sat, Oct 08, 2022, 9:51 AM UTC

"However, practically speaking, I can’t imagine it poses much of a risk of fire, or anything else."

Writer seems to not understand turning off transmitters is not about fire risk but electromagnetic compatibility with flight instruments. Hundreds of RF sources of different quality each with their own spurious emissions add up, but whether they seriously affect those instruments is still debated.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#547

Post by llampx » Sat, Oct 08, 2022, 9:53 AM UTC

someweirdperson wrote: post #530

atoav wrote: post #443

Earlier quoted context omitted.

So electrical engineers could just use a MCU let it power itself of during flight, use passive components (discharging capacitors) to trigger a wakeup after a set time and you are good to go?

> use passive components (discharging capacitors) mechanical egg timer?

Definitely no problem with a ticking noise coming from your luggage.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#548

Post by switch007 » Sat, Oct 08, 2022, 9:55 AM UTC

This decade is really the year of shitty customer service isn’t it. They’ve just given up. Airports and planes are going to be miserable places for the foreseeable

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#549

Post by vladvasiliu » Sat, Oct 08, 2022, 9:59 AM UTC

Semaphor wrote: post #501

squeaky-clean wrote: post #441

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The reason for that one I've heard from pilot friends is just that they want you upright and alert during takeoff and landing. I've been told to stop reading a book during a landing once. But imagine most of the flight crew don't want to deal with the potential fights from telling someone to put away a non-cellular device.

> want you upright and alert during takeoff I’m great at sleeping, so I sometimes fall asleep during taxi and before takeoff. That was never an issue.

I'm the opposite, basically never sleep on a plane.

But I've seen many people asleep during landing and turbulence, and can't remember a single instance of the attendants even attempting to wake them up. They would go open the windows and taking care not to bother them.

Re: Lufthansa bans AirTags in checked luggage

#550

Post by Semaphor » Sat, Oct 08, 2022, 10:11 AM UTC

vladvasiliu wrote: post #549

Semaphor wrote: post #501

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> want you upright and alert during takeoff I’m great at sleeping, so I sometimes fall asleep during taxi and before takeoff. That was never an issue.

I'm the opposite, basically never sleep on a plane. But I've seen many people asleep during landing and turbulence, and can't remember a single instance of the attendants even attempting to wake them up. They would go open the windows and taking care not to bother them.

I don’t envy you, my wife is the same, so those long flights (Germany South Africa) are pretty hard on her. And yeah, as long as you are visibly belted, they don’t bother you.