As soon as the plane starts to move, tourists are told to switch off their mobile phone or put their device into flight mode. But why is this the case?

Many people believe that using a mobile without flight mode on could cause the plane to malfunction.

However, Rosie Panter, a travel expert at dealchecker, has explained the real reason that passengers shouldn’t use their phone during a flight.

She said: “When you are at cruising altitude, which is between 33,000 and 42,000 feet, your phone will try to ‘ping’ off multiple telephone masts at the same time, which can cause interference with signals sent from the plane.

“To the pilot, this may sound like feedback from a speaker and microphone, which isn’t dangerous per se, just annoying.

“Even off flight mode, you are unlikely to get a reliable connection, so it isn’t worth the trouble.

“We’d suggest downloading your films beforehand, or posting that one final Instagram Story before the seatbelt sign comes on!”

While using a phone isn’t necessarily dangerous, it could be really annoying for the pilots so tourists should always turn their phone onto flight mode.