In the wake of the US Federal Aviation Administration granting airlines permission to allow passengers to uses during all stages of flight, The European Aviation Safety Agency has been looking into the matter too.
New Guidance from EASA has been released that will allow airlines to cover the use of devices during all stages of flight (taxi, takeoff, flight, landing). Devices included in the EASA guidance are:
- Tablet Compuers
- Smartphones
- E-readers
- MP3 players
Devices will have to be in ‘Flight Mode’ or ‘Airplane Mode’ and transmitting capabilities will have to be disabled during all stages of flight.
Laptop computers and Ultrabooks have been deemed too heavy, and must be stowed during the flight critical phases as these devices are bulky (and think about it… a laptop loose in a cabin when a plane lands could have severe consequences…).
Airlines will have to get approval from their local aviation agencies (so a British registered airline would consult the Civil Aviation Administration) in regards to use and deployment, but in the coming weeks, there should be a slew of announcements from the major (and probably not so major) carriers about the use of electronic devices in flight.
EASA is also looking into the use of Electronic Devices in full transmission mode during flight, with EASA hoping more airlines install on-board systems to provide a connection to the outside world. More guidance is due in 2014 regarding this
If airlines choose to adopt this, it will be one hell of a good thing – least of all it will provide consistency between the US and EU regarding electronics, and put out any arguments about “The other airline I was on allowed me to use this device when taking off”.
It’s a good start.
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