Loosening the ban could benefit wireless carriers such as Sprint Corp. as travelers use in-flight time to work and communicate, though most cell phones won't work once a plane reaches its cruising altitude, said Sprint spokeswoman Mary Nell Westbrook...

Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Laura Brown said the agency doesn't have its own ban on in-flight cell-phone use, though it has supported the FCC's rule and individual airline policies that regulate whether a traveler can make calls once a plane lands and before it reaches the gate.

While the FCC prohibits in-flight cell phone use because of concerns that communication by callers in airplanes will interfere with calls between on-ground users, the FAA is focused on whether cell phone use will interfere with a plane's navigation system, Brown said. An independent organization is reviewing that issue for the agency, she said.