While travelers can now use a slew of mobile devices during flight, it’s not just the gadgets in the cabin that fall under the auspices of the Federal Aviation Administration. The agency issued an order yesterday saying more than 1,300 Boeing jets must have their pilot displays replaced, to make sure they’re resistant to any possible interference coming from WiFi devices used in the cockpit.
Things like airspeed, altitude and other measurements the pilots need during a flight need to be displayed on those screens, made by Honeywell, reports the Wall Street Journal, and officials say they could get mucked up from such WiFi-enabled devices, especially now that airlines increasingly give pilots things like tablets to assist in cockpit operations.
The displays can be vulnerable to other radio frequency transmissions from things like satellite communications systems and cellphones as well, the FAA says.
U.S. airlines will have five years to complete the swaps on Boeing 777 and 737s, with multiple screens in each cockpit needing an upgrade.
Thus far, no incidents have happened mid-air, but the FAA cited tests from Boeing that showed that “blanking was a safety issue.” For example, if a screen suddenly flickered out during takeoff or landing, there could be “loss of control of the airplane,” the FAA says.
The new units will be better at shielding the displays from signal interference and have upgraded software. Honeywell stressed the fact however, that “no display units have ever blinked in flight due to Wi-Fi interference.”
FAA Orders Replacement of Pilot Displays on Boeing Jets [Wall Street Journal]
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