Idea for Airlines: Turn off Electronics Light
Posted: February 5th, 2010 | Author: justino | Filed under: design, ideas, observations | 2 Comments »
I’ve been traveling lately and have been struck by the pointless No Smoking lights in airplanes. I think we all know by now that smoking is not permitted. Seriously, are there still people out there that are unaware and likely to light a cigarette in flight? Not only is the light pointless, it is made even more so by staying lit the entire time. To me, this light is a waste of space and could be used for something far more useful.
The Turn Off Electronics Light
I think it would be great if airplanes replaced the No Smoking image with a Turn Off Electronics image. I often find myself listening to music only to be tapped on the shoulder by a stewardess asking me to turn it off. The reason why I missed the announcement? Because I was listening to music. If the light would flash when it was time to turn off electronics, in addition to the voice, it would be very useful.
My United flight last Monday from Chicago to New Orleans had a “Turn Off Electronic Devices” sign where “no smoking” usually is. But it was text, not an image. I should have taken a picture. It was obviously a much newer plane, an Embraer 170, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Embraer_E-Jets .
Brilliant!
I always wondered how they expected people to hear them when half the plane has headphones on.
I was on a flight recently where the dude announcing the requirements was like “and yes, unless you are stuck in 1962 we no longer allow smoking on the aircraft”