GPS in an airplane

[hemi-droid]

I haven't had any success getting a GPS signal on my Droid in a commercial passenger plane. I've tried pressing the phone flat against the window for a long time, but no lock.

Does anyone have any tips on how I might improve my results? Anyone had success trying this?

 

[Vulcan1600]

Ummm...open the door? Actually you might meet some very nice TSA employee welcome when the plane lands if a flight attendant sees your Droid turned on. Just a thought.

 

[OpalCat]

You can have it on, you just have to have it in airplane mode. (This does turn off the GPS though, obviously)

 

[cpinto]

I haven't had any success getting a GPS signal on my Droid in a commercial passenger plane. I've tried pressing the phone flat against the window for a long time, but no lock.

Does anyone have any tips on how I might improve my results? Anyone had success trying this?

You are not permitted to operate a portable GPS on an airline.

Also, the outer windows are too thick and double paned which will block much of the signal.

Another point is that this GPS may not work going 600 mph. Not sure about that one.

 

[WVOz1970]

I've had minimal success with getting GPS to work in a plane. My best success comes from the Microsoft Streets and Trips USB plug in receiver. It also helps to be on the side of the plane facing south or west.

Not sure about the phone reception, but I know that dedicated GPS receivers struggle to get much of a signal through all the aluminum and glass. I'd imagine the phone is probably struggling even more.

I have read that the phone can acquire GPS signal with the radio turned off. It uses the tower signal to get approximate location and then gets satellite fix for datum. Without the cell tower for approx location, it takes considerably longer to get a fix.

If you really want GPS in a plane, you probably need something more dedicated. Plus, it depends on the airline, but some of them get really picky about you using GPS. (And then there's Southwest, who actually says right in their magazine that GPS receivers are fine to use above 10k. They are the only US airline that specifically says you can use them, afaik)

 

[tu3218]

yeah I tried my droid in a plane and it didn't work :/. I wanted to see how high an how fast we were going lol

 

[deadernie]

You can have it on, you just have to have it in airplane mode. (This does turn off the GPS though, obviously)

Actually GPS can still be turned on while in airplane mode. Just can't receive data data for maps.

 

[unix.punkx]

... You do realize you are 35,000 ft in the air right?

 

[SGTiger]

... You do realize you are 35,000 ft in the air right?

Your point is what?

 

[Tabs]

... You do realize you are 35,000 ft in the air right?

Aircraft use GPS themselves (among a couple older radio based technologies) to navigate, there's no reason to ridicule this.

I tried a few months ago using a map caching app, but I couldn't get satellite lock with the Droid. I think the Droid may rely on the cell connection in some way for it because I have successfully used a Garmin car GPS unit on a plane before.

 

[skiahh]

You can have it on, you just have to have it in airplane mode. (This does turn off the GPS though, obviously)

Why does this "obviously" turn off the GPS RECEIVER?

I'm not sure if it does turn of the GPS or not in airplane mode, but it's certainly not obvious. GPS receivers do not transmit or emit any signals (well, any to speak of), so, in theory, it should work just fine... as long as it can see the signals (which are low intensity to begin with).

You are not permitted to operate a portable GPS on an airline.

Also, the outer windows are too thick and double paned which will block much of the signal.

Another point is that this GPS may not work going 600 mph. Not sure about that one.

Where does it say you are not permitted to operate a GPS on an airliner? Some companies don't allow it, but the FAA doesn't prohibit it.

You should be able to get a signal by holding the unit up to the window, but it's not guaranteed.

600 MPH? What do you think the two folks up front are using to navigate at 600 MPH? What do you think supersonic fighter jets use to navigate at 1000 MPH? Yes, it's GPS. There are backup systems, but typically, the GPS is keeping the inertial nav updated, not the other way around.

... You do realize you are 35,000 ft in the air right?

Again, what do you think the two folks up front are using to navigate around at 35,000'??

 

[hemi-droid]

Just to clear up one other mistaken assumption: You can get a data connection, too, if you're flying on an aircraft equipped with on-board wi-fi, which I generally do.

I've also been able to get a gps lock with a car-navigation unit. Perhaps their receivers are stronger. I know they tend to advertise things like "SIRF Star" receivers (I may not have remembered the name properly) that purport to achieve a lock more quickly than other receivers, so maybe the Droid doesn't have this specialized circuitry. And the thing about using cell tower triangulation to get an initial general location may be how the Droid comes close to car-nav GPS performance on land but not in the air. Just speculation at this point, but at least it makes sense.

I do tend to sit on the north side of the plane, so that could be a factor, but I did have one flight recently on the west side of the plane, also without success.

 

[gpsmapper]

It is legal to use GPS on a plane. Each airline has their own rules though...

Airlines which APPROVE/DISPROVE GPS use in Flight

These can be overridden by the flight crew though.

GPS on the Droid still works in airplane mode. But you would still need an app to show speed, altitude, record a track or otherwise meet your goals for using it.

Make sure your GPS is on and has a good lock before taking off. Then turn it on again ASAP. Hold it against the window. This will give you the best chance of it working. Of course there are good satellite days and bad satellite days, in terms of where the constellation is relevant to you. And you're only able to see half the sky, so the odds may be against you.

 

[OpalCat]

... You do realize you are 35,000 ft in the air right?

Yes, that much closer to the satellites. Back before most airlines banned them, I used to take my Garmin on the plane with me and as long as I had a window seat, it kept my location going along nicely. (It made it really fun afterward when in the car to show people my average driving speed :icon_ devil

 

[OpalCat]

Where does it say you are not permitted to operate a GPS on an airliner?

Usually in the magazine in the seat pocket. I think all but one airline in the US* specifically bans the use of GPS on the plane (which is why "airplane mode" turns it off). I used to use my Garmin but stopped after being scolded by a flight attendant. Nowadays it's actually listed in the prohibited devices.


* edited to change, after reading the link in the recent post: a few more do, as of recent changes, but most do NOT allow it.