Ryanair to allow passenger to use mobile phones onboard

Irish low-budget airline Ryanair has said in a statement that they plan to start allowing their passengers to use their mobile phones from next year.

This decision would however require approval from the regulatory bodies. If everything goes according to plan, Ryanair’s passengers traveling on 50 of the airline’s planes would be able to call, text and e-mail using their phones at rates that mirror international roaming charges.

They would be taking help from communications company OnAir to enable mobile technology on their entire fleet of Boeing 737 aircraft.

Ryanair’s chief executive Michael O’Leary said in a statement on these plans: “The revenues generated by onboard mobile telephony will reduce our costs and help us to keep offering the lowest fares in Europe while at the same time doubling the size of our operation over the next five years as we grow to carry 80 million passengers annually by 2012.”