Ask Siri: iPhone 4S tells if your flight is on time

Want to check if your flight is running on time? Grab your iPhone 4S and ask the voice-controlled Siri 'personal assistant' built into Apple's latest smartphone.

The question you need to ask is "Tell me about [name of airline] [flight number]".

For example, "Tell me about British Airways BA15".

Siri automatically funnels that request through to Google via the Safari web browser, then shows the Google flight status page with the latest information on your flight.

This is the same info that you'd get if you fired up Safari and typed 'British Airways BA15' into the search field, but of course Siri makes it a delightful hands-free process.

We ran Siri through tests with the names of all the major airlines and it recognised every single one, even when you say 'United' without that American drawl or twang.

However, you'll need to be strict with your syntax and precisely follow the "Tell me about..." formula, which is how Siri knows to run a Google search..

Natural variations, such as "What's the status of [airline, flight]" and "Is [airline, flight] on time?", draw a blank.

Nonetheless, this is just one more Cool Trick you can add to your traveller's toolbox!

Thanks for AusBT readers and iPhone 4S owners Ian, Michael, Paris, Pu and Shaun for helping us out with these tests: everyone at AusBT HQ is still running last-gen iPhone 4. Hmmm, maybe it's time for a Christmas bonus..?

David Flynn

David Flynn is the Editor-in-Chief of Executive Traveller and a bit of a travel tragic with a weakness for good coffee, shopping and lychee martinis.