Photographing from inside commercial aircraft

Thanks for all your responses, I think I've triggered off some real debate here. Personally I accept that each airline has a right to set and enforce rules of their own, and indeed make a ruling on an individual flight when they want to. I have no desire to challenge the stances taken by the cabin staff, frankly I think the've got enough to put up with on most flights. But it has been very useful for me to establish that no-one is aware of an all-encompassing ban throughout the industry. I'm flying to Denver tomorrow and who knows, I might get bored......

 

Thanks again.

Jeff, Now I remember, it was Air Littoral (sp?). The Littoral referring to coastal Med. Marseilles, France to Constantine, Algeria.

<i>I have no desire to challenge the stances taken by the cabin staff</i><p>

 

Nobody suggested this. However, in the absence of any explicit instructions not to photograph, there should be no problem photographing.

I feel curious about Tom. He seems to be so afraid of airflight. I feel sorry for his condition. May we others all enjoy life to a fuller extent up in the air, talking, thinking, and seeing (or picturing) planet earth as we cirle it.

 

Oh, poor Tom, what has befallen you? May you get over this anxiety or decide to just stay aground. I for one will no longer go on "fun rides" at the fair, not worth my discomfort.

Photography aboard aircraft might be barred under Portuguese law, someone would have to look it up.

 

In most countries it is permitted, though cabincrew can tell you to turn off your camera while other electronic equipment is also to be turned off like during takeoff and landing.

 

Photography of military operations at airports and while overflying military installations can be considered espionage under the law of the country you are in or over at the time.

Remember that in some countries airports are considered military installations!

Also remember that some airlines are run by the military of that country, making their aircraft military aircraft and their staff military personel.

If that country also made the photography of military equipment and staff illegal you'd therefore in that country not be allowed to photograph in that airline's aircraft.

This is AFAIK not the case in Portugal.

 

To all the people who drag the US into it, as usual you make no sense at all and are just trying to turn everything into a propaganda match for John "Osama bin Ho" Kerry.

Just for an additional data point, I have flown many times in commercial flights (LAN, Pluna and others) over the Andes (Montevideo-Santiago) and of course I have shot hundreds of frames - never had any indication from the flight crew. I used a Pentax K which is purely mechanical but also a small digital. I did not carry a camera bag, just the camera and a 35-70 cheap zoom in a plain old neverready case.

 

If a flight attendant had told me I could not do it, of course I would just obey.

 

Adrian, sad thing, but on the other hand I would rather have an overzealous crew than the opposite.

I too was told that digital photography was forbidden during takeoff & landing on a qantas flight out of ayers rock and into perth in april 07 - very irritating as i particularly wanted an arial photo of Uluru. I cannot see that digital photography produces anything that would interfere with the operation of an aeroplane (if so then terrorists could have a field day) what about pacemakers, wristwatches and hearing aids - all of which give out more signal than a digital camera. I shall look for other airlines in future - but that's difficult as qantas have a monopoly on the routes through ayres rock.