U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill today met with the country’s telecom chief to
discuss the need for changes to Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)
regulations prohibiting the use of electronic devices on airplanes while below
10,000 feet—an effort McCaskill has pursued to make travel more reasonable and
convenient, and to better reflect advances in technologies for both aircraft and
electronic devices.
In a meeting with Federal Communications
Commission (FCC) Chairman Julius Genachowski, McCaskill cited her recent
letter to acting FAA chief Michael
Huerta highlighting the nonsensical nature of the existing rules. Genachowski
has also previously written to the FAA urging changes to the FAA rules.
“The Chairman and I agree on the need to work with the
FAA, airlines, electronic device makers, and other stakeholders to formulate
commonsense policies, without compromising passenger safety,” McCaskill said.
“The idea that in-flight use of electronic devices for things like reading a
book poses a threat to the safety of airline passengers is baseless and
outdated.”
Current rules do not allow passengers to use portable
electronic devices (PEDs) for the full duration of a flight but McCaskill
pointed out that the FAA allows airlines to replace their paper flight manuals
in the cockpit with tablet computers, which can be used during all phases of the
flight.
McCaskill’s December letter went on to suggest that if
the FAA does not act on this issue in a timely manner she is “prepared to pursue
legislative solutions.”
McCaskill and Genachowski’s discussion occurred as
members of the FAA’s Aviation Rulemaking Committee for Portable Electronic
Devices is set to meet in Washington this week to discuss the issue. The
committee, which was formally created by the FAA and began meeting last month,
is comprised of representatives from the airline industry, electronic device
makers, airline employee unions, consumer groups and federal agencies, including
the FCC. The committee has a July 31 deadline to make recommendations to the FAA
on changes to the current electronic device rules.
McCaskill is a member of the Senate Committee on
Commerce, Science and Transportation, which has jurisdiction over communications
and aviation policy.
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