You can now make video calls on British Airways flights - I beg that you don't

British Airways is rolling out Starlink high-speed internet across its fleet and will allow passengers to make and receive video and phone calls during flights. The change reduces the temporary isolation that flights traditionally provide and brings in-device communication similar to everyday public spaces. Concerns focus on whether passengers will use headphones and keep audio low, since many people watch videos or listen to content at full volume in shared environments. Examples include loud video playback on trains and phone audio that disturbs nearby passengers. British Airways asks passengers to be considerate, use headphones for watching or listening, and speak in a low voice for video calls.

"As British Airways launches high-speed Starlink internet across its entire fleet, the airline has announced it will allow passengers to make and receive video and phone calls aboard its planes. The disappointment here is twofold: one, that we are willingly giving up the sanctity of the temporary isolation that flights offer, and allowing phones into them just like everywhere else; and two, that British Airways thinks all of its passengers can be trusted to enjoy this new privilege without foisting their voices and the tinny din of their devices upon those with whom they're sharing space."

"Think, dear reader, of the actor Matthew Rhys, who just this week gave an interview to the Wall Street Journal, decrying, quite rightly, the lack of headphone use running rampant among video watchers in public spaces the world over. Even in the quiet car of the Amtrak Northeast Regional, from within which I write this rant, a person was watching America's Funniest Home Video-style highlights on YouTube at full volume, nary an earbud in use, until approached by the conductor and ordered to stop. On Mother's Day, on the Metro North, I sat inches from a woman playing slots on her phone, the jangling coin sound effects blaring."

"British Airways, for its part, makes a plea on its website while outlining how they hope this will work: "Please be considerate." Guidance for potential video callers asks them to use headphones and speak in a low voice: "Please always use headphones when watching or listening to content on your device," they request, and so do I."

Read at CN Traveller