A pilot has detailed the consequences of ignoring cabin crew instructions and not setting your electronic devices to airplane mode while flying.

According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), all plane passengers carrying electronic devices with cellular connections must switch them to airplane mode or disable the connection before takeoff.

The agency states this is to prevent potential interference with critical aircraft instruments, and Booking.com mentions it could cause ground networks to become 'overloaded'.

“The extent to which phones affect aviation technology hasn't been thoroughly studied, but pilots report hearing background noise and interference from phones, particularly during landing when mobile phones reconnect with towers,” the holiday experts added.

But how dangerous is it really to use your phone during a flight?

An aviation expert has explained what happens if you forget to put your phone on airplane mode (Getty Stock Image)

Well, according to aviation expert and TikTok content creator @Perchpoint, forgetting to switch your phone to airplane mode won't bring about an apocalypse.

"This is just a friendly reminder that the airplane mode button is not a conspiracy,” he began.

“If you forget to activate airplane mode, it's not the end of the world. The plane won't crash, and it won't disrupt onboard systems."

Nonetheless, there is a safety concern, as the flight professional noted: "It can potentially interfere with the headsets.

“If an aircraft with 70, 80, or 150 passengers has even three or four phones trying to connect to a radio tower for an incoming call, it emits radio waves.

"Those radio waves could potentially interfere with the pilots' headsets.”

Pilots have personally experienced this interference, describing it as sounding like a ‘mosquito’ buzzing around their heads.

Not putting your phone in the desired mode could affect communications (Tyla)

“It’s not catastrophic, but it’s quite irritating when you're trying to jot down instructions, and it sounds like a wasp is buzzing around you,” the social media star continued.

“So, if you're wondering why you need to use airplane mode, that's the reason.”

Dan Bubb, a professor at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, who is both a historian and a former airline pilot, supports @Perchpoint’s statements.

He told Newsweek: "The pilot is right. It could interfere with the headset, but it won't cause the plane to crash."

He further explained that in many aircraft, pilots are positioned so high that they cannot see the runway directly beneath them during landing.

Instead, they rely on a radio altimeter and listen to a voice announcing the altitude as the plane nears the runway.

There have been no documented plane crashes due to cellular interference—better safe than sorry, right?