[VRWC For Truth]

Red herring. There are no cell phone towers in the middle of the ocean.

[gunsequalfreedom]

Red herring. There are no cell phone towers in the middle of the ocean.

If in the plane was in the middle of the ocean, the of course. But by the time the families realized something was amiss an started checking the phones it could have been over land according to the most recent speculation.

If the plane never made it to land, certainly you are correct.

[Washi]

Red herring. There are no cell phone towers in the middle of the ocean.

And if there were, or if the plane was on land, within range of a cell tower, the cell carrier would know, within a fairly small area, where the phone was. Even when no call is being made, cell phones and cell towers communicate with each other and it is possible to determine which cell tower is nearest to any given cell phone.