I was under that impression for a while too. Maybe we’re confusing it with Goose Bay.
you win!
Another update, from the London Times.
Makes sense, i suppose.
If Iit was left before the restrictions went into effect, or from a country not enforcing restrictiond for travel to the UK. But for the first few days (including when this was posted), there was a “no electronics” policy in effect for planes into the UK from the US (and I think France, but the French sites are so contemptuous of all of this that I can’t quite tell).
The plane may not have come in from the US, and the phone could have been on it for more than one flight.
Yes. I thought I conveyed that with “If Iit was left before the restrictions went into effect, or from a country not enforcing restrictiond for travel to the UK.”
Fairly unlikely a US phone would ring over Ireland/England. Most US phones can’t receive calls there (technically incompatible) and fewer are actually on a system that will allow forward of calls there. Not impossible, but less likely than a European phone.
Any word on whether the pilot said, “Don’t make me come back there” to the passengers?
Tri-band (depending on the bands) will operate equally in Europe and America. With a dual-band phone, I’ve received calls in France from the U.K. When I was in Brunei, my U.K. dual-band mobile worked just fine (if expensively). It depends upon whether the relevant phone companies have an arrangement.