A courtesy telephone is a telephone located in airport terminals, large train stations, hotel lobbies, and other places where many travellers are expected, which is used to relay messages to a specific person.
It is typically used in connection with a public address system announcement of the style "Gwen Cooper, please pick up the nearest white courtesy telephone." Courtesy telephones may have a distinctive color, which is traditionally white in US airports,[1] and most have no dialing capabilities but rather are simple ringdown stations to reach an operator or other fixed number.[2] Some double as emergency telephones, having buttons by which a user can distinguish between emergency use and inquiry.
Customers can use a courtesy phone to seek information, such as where to find further transport or a person trying to meet them. Some courtesy phones provide a direct line to a number of advertised businesses, such as motels or taxis.[3][4] They may be located near baggage claim, ticketing areas, and security checkpoints.[5]
Other telephones in public or semi-public places which may be used to make outside calls are also sometimes called "courtesy telephones".
In popular culture
Courtesy telephones are featured prominently as a running gag in the cult comedy film Airplane!.
The songs "Sharkey's Day" and "Sharkey's Night" from Laurie Anderson's 1984 album Mister Heartbreak include the line: "Paging Mr. Sharkey. White courtesy telephone please."
