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From: covert@covert.enet.dec.com (John R. Covert  29-Nov-1990 1017)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Re: Questions About the GTE Airfone
Message-ID: <15124@accuvax.nwu.edu>
Date: 30 Nov 90 05:11:27 GMT
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X-Telecom-Digest: Volume 10, Issue 858, Message 5 of 13

>1.  How is the credit card verified ?  Are they all stored on board
>and downloaded after the airplane lands, or is it real-time ?

I'm 99% sure it's real-time, done during call setup.
 
>2.  What happens if everyone wanted to place a call at the same time?
>On the jet I was on, that would be 56 phones in use at the same time.
>Quite a multiplexer/transceiver, if that's how it's done.

Only a small number of phones can be in use at one time.  Other
callers will get a recording telling them "Please wait for the dial
tone."
 
>3.  How is frequency assignment done for numerous planes in the same
>local area (i.e. 20 planes backed up, waiting for takeoff at O'Hare)?

Similar to land-based cellular phones.  However, Airfone is not
supposed to work on the ground.  There may be airports close enough to
airfone cell sites that it works at some of them, but it is an
"in-flight" service.
 
>4.  Has anyone tried a ringback or number announcement from the phone
>?  I know the phones aren't capable of actually receiving a call or
>ringing, but it would be interesting to see what happens.

Those sort of numbers are blocked.  The phone accepts only
NPA-NXX-XXXX or 011+CC+...
 
>5.  Is there a nationwide cellular-like network for these phones, i.e.
>the ground station hands off the call(s) to the next station when the
>plane leaves the service area ?

There is a nationwide network, but there is no hand-off.


john