FAA to pilots: Turn off personal devices in the cockpit
- Pilots could still use laptops and iPads for work
- Proposed ban urged by Congress%2C NTSB
- One incident driving the policy%3A Two pilots overflew their destination in 2009
WASHINGTON -- The Federal Aviation Administration is proposing to prohibit pilots from using personal wireless devices in the cockpit, although iPads or laptops that pilots use for work would still be allowed.
Since 1981, the FAA prohibits any activity while taxiing, taking off or landing that could distract pilots from their duties, under what is called a "sterile cockpit" policy when planes are below 10,000 feet in the air. The new proposal would extend the prohibition against personal electronics to the entire flight.
The 19-page proposal, which will be published Tuesday in the Federal Register, aims to reduce distractions for pilots so they can pay better attention to air-traffic control, weather, environmental hazards and other concerns.
"It's like driving: Don't text while you're driving," says John Cox, a retired airline captain with US Airways who runs his own aviation consulting company, Safety Operating Systems. "This is a little broader in that it says don't use personal electronic equipment while you're operating the airplane."
Congress called for the prohibition a year ago in the latest FAA policy legislation. The FAA says several incidents prompted the proposal, including an incident in October 2009, when two Northwest Airlines pilots using their personal laptops flew 150 miles past their destination of Minneapolis.
In February 2009, the co-pilot in Colgan Air Flight 3407 sent a text message on her personal cellphone after the plane pulled away from the gate, about 5 minutes before it was cleared for takeoff. The flight later crashed, killing 50 people.
The National Transportation Safety Board found the text was not directly associated with the accident, but the board recommended that the FAA prohibit the use of personal electronic devices in the cockpit.
Kelly Nantel, an NTSB spokeswoman, says the board is looking forward to reviewing the proposal and will provide formal comments at that point.
The FAA had a rule since 2006 that said cellphones in the cockpit should be turned off after leaving the gate. And Delta Air Lines, which governed Northwest during that flight, had a policy against using personal electronics during a flight.
The latest proposal doesn't affect pilots using electronics for their jobs.
"The proposed rule does not prohibit the use of personal wireless communications devices or laptop computers if the purpose is directly related to operation of the aircraft," or for emergencies and employment related communications, according to the proposal.
Airlines such as Alaska and American have given their pilots iPads to lighten the load of carrying paper documents. American estimated that removing 35 pounds of documents from each flight will save $1.2 million in fuel each year.
American Airlines referred questions about the FAA proposal to the industry group Airlines for America. Victoria Day, a spokeswoman for the industry group, says it will review the proposal and may comment after analyzing it.
FAA will collect comments about the proposal for 60 days. Cox, the safety expert who also answers readers' safety questions for USA TODAY, says the agency will have to develop a clear definition of what is a professional or personal use of a device.
"Once you define it, then the crews know what to do with it," Cox says.