Date: 29 July 2011

South African Airways has applied to the Civil Aviation Authority to reconsider its policy of banning cell phone use during flights.

SAA is to start a testing phase to investigate which cell phone models can be used in-flight.

Meanwhile, Comair, which owns British Airways and Kulula.com, also announced that the Civil Aviation Authority has given it permission to allow the use of cell phones on its flights on a trial basis.

It is unclear how long these trial periods will last, and when a final decision regarding in-flight cell phone use will be made.