That video of an iPhone AirDropping images to a second plane at 35,000 feet was a hoax

“Singapore Airlines told IBTimes UK that the AirDrop stunt definitely didn’t happen,” Mary-Ann Russon reports for International Business Times. “‘Our pilot was only replying in jest to the radio message from the captain of the other flight. Photos were exchanged by email later, however,’ a spokesperson said.

“A cargo pilot is claiming to have wirelessly transfered photos across 1,000ft from one aeroplane to another in midair, in a video that is now going viral,” Russon reports. “The video appears to show that the photos are sent within a few seconds, after which the Singapore Airlines pilot is heard saying, rather indistinctly, ‘We appreciate your AirDrop.'”

“In the video, the cargo pilot’s iPhone is clearly shown to be in Airplane mode, and only Bluetooth is enabled,” Russon reports. “Add to that is the fact that Apple itself says that the range of the AirDrop function is only about 30ft, and if you want to use the service, you need to have Wi-Fi enabled at the same time.”

Read more in the full article here.

MacDailyNews Take: Well, it was fun while it lasted! But, what about that report where AppleInsider “spoke to a former naval aviator who has transitioned to commercial flight. He confirmed to us that this is not all that uncommon amongst pilots, and he has done it at approximately the same range and altitude on more than one occasion?”

SEE ALSO:
Video: iPhone sends images to second plane at 35,000 feet via Apple’s AirDrop – August 4, 2017

26 Comments

  1. duh.

    there simply isn’t enough power in bluethooth.

    remember kiddies, your phone is just a small radio working with 3 different kinds of radios: cellular, wifi and bluetooth. Each has it’s intrinsic strengths and weaknesses. Bluethooth cannot travel thousands of feet if not miles…….

    1. All news that you don’t agree with is fake.
      All news that you DO agree with is real.

      Reminds me of a classic George Carlin routine where he talked about driving on a highway, where all the people going faster than he was were “morons” and all those going slower were “assholes”. Only he was going the right speed.

      Welcome to fantasy land. Hope you enjoy your stay.

    2. Throughout history, every news organizations has made mistakes and reports information that turned out not to be true. That was true even back in the old days of newspapers when reporters had hours or days, rather than just minutes or seconds, to verify sources and data. People make mistakes. Sometimes those mistakes are driven by personal or organizational paradigms – what you want to be true, not necessarily what is true. In those cases, the sources and data may not receive the necessary scrutiny.

      But that does *not* mean that all of the news coming form those sources is fake/false. That is the fallacy of the GOP — our opinion/news is correct and the rest of it is fake. It makes the people who want to believe it happy and, as a result, it makes Fox News and similar sites a lot of money. But it is the wrong thing for people to do.

        1. Why are you so butthurt? You keep posting your butthurt survey and you haven’t even filled it out. I don’t need one. I’m not a pathetic redstater whining and sniveling about those mean old Democrats that rescued us from the last right wing nut job.

          Boohoo… life is so bad that a sexual predator is looking up to you.

    1. Well if you’re so convinced of your own stupidity, why don’t you sue the 99% of the world’s scientists who do believe man-made climate change is real. You could have your day in court, trot out ‘your’ peer reviewed proof and put it before a jury?
      Then when you are laughed out of court for wasting their time, you can fill in your own Butthurt Report.
      #denial_desert
      #kakistocracy

      1. You should really do some homework on that 97% (not 99%) number. Those who want to convince people that CAGW is real should stop damaging their own credibility by repeating political propaganda cited by advocacy groups that can be readily proven false.

        The 97% consensus came out of a 2013 study led by Australian researcher John Cook. The 97% Consensus by Numbers:
        1. 11,944 peer-reviewed papers analyzed on global warming published between 1991 and 2011.
        2. 32.6%, or 3,896, of those papers, endorsed the ‘consensus’ that humans contribute to global warming while most of the remainder took no position.
        3. Of that 32.6%, 97.1% agreed that humans contribute to global warming to some degree.

        To be part of Cook’s consensus, a scientific study only needed to agree carbon dioxide is a greenhouse gas and that human activities have warmed the planet to some unspecified extent. Neither of these points is controversial. The question of whether human activities play a dominant role in climate change was never addressed.

        Those who go around advocating for expensive solutions for CO2 reduction are being disingenuous when citing the 97% consensus.

        I am under no illusion that you’ll believe anything I write. But if you have an open mind I would request that you look it up yourself – if you dare. Or do you want Jack Nicholson to scream at you, “You can’t handle the truth!”

      2. No, the 99% figure you claim is way off. When the question, “Is human activity {burning fossil fuels} solely responsible for the statistical mean temperature increase on earth?” the international scientific community answers 70/30 (70% responding “no”). The key word here is ‘solely’ in explaining the poll results.

        The cause of global warming is most likely a combination of human activity (fossil fuel emissions) being the amplifier for our sun’s activity. Read this link:

        http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/3869753.stm

        The problem with this answer is that most people don’t want to accept a ‘shades of gray’ answer as the reason. Indeed, most want to vehemently argue that human activity is 100% responsible for the statistical mean temperature increase on the planet, or that solar activity is 100% responsible.

    2. No, sad lamentable bot. No.
      Someone told you that you were wrong.
      You ignored them.
      You contributed to spreading further ignorance.
      Look back in shame and embarrassment.

      –>For those who wish to understand exactly what’s going on at this precise moment in the Earth’s DeEvolution and WHY, this is a good starting point article:

      50% Of The Great Barrier Reef Is Dead Or Dying

      [My background includes three biology degrees, just to indicate some level of professional understanding of the situation.]

        1. I haven’t seen it and probably won’t. I’ve been keeping up with the science data for decades.

          Meanwhile, you clearly don’t bother to think or care. I remember better days of your brain. No more.

    1. Dana Barrett: You know, you don’t act like a scientist.
      Dr. Peter Venkman: They’re usually pretty stiff.
      Dana Barrett: You’re more like a game show host.

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