[inasmuch]

I've definitely experienced the ear-piercing scream of a siren on the other end only to be told by the person I'm talking to that the ambulance is like eight blocks away. I remember that as far back as my LG Chocolate.

But what AirPods are doing is either a dramatic escalation of that or something different altogether. Typically when I encounter this problem, I or the person I'm talking to will hang up and call back without AirPods, using the regular phone mic or speakerphone or whatever, and it will be significantly better if not completely resolved.