Australian airline passengers are a step closer to gaining full use of personal devices during flights after the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) approved gate to gate use of smartphones and tablets.
However it’s not quite time to get excited just yet. Current conditions include airlines having to meet new regulatory measures while devices are restricted to no larger than a kilogram and must be used, for now, in ‘flight’ mode.
Qantas is leading the charge to become the first airline to gain additional use approval and will be able to offer passengers device access outside of the cruise phase of flights in the next six to eight weeks, according to iTnews.
Electronic devices previously required to be switched off during take-off and landing will no longer be subject to the out-of-date CASA codes so long as airlines are able to meet safety measures which ensure electro-magnetic interference will not affect older model planes and the additional training of cabin crew to deal with fires caused by battery operated devices.
“The bottom line is electro-magnetic interference is not an issue for all the new aircraft,” CASA spokesperson Peter Gibson told iTnews.
“It’s only the older ones, and there’s very few of those left in service. The bulk of Australia’s aircraft are relatively new, 10 years or less, so all the aircraft on all the major airlines would have no issues.”
Offering increased connectivity appears the way of the future for operators. A number of airlines currently offer in-flight internet connections at a commercial fee, however this isn’t usually available until a certain altitude is reached.
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