Brussels, 29/09/2014 (Agence Europe) - Tablets, smartphones and Mp3 players can now be used free of restrictions during aeroplane flights, the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) announced on Friday 26 September. All restrictions have been lifted, so that this equipment can be used in flight. It is, however, still up to the European airlines themselves to decide whether they can be used or not.
In 2013, EASA had already decided to allow these electronic devices to remain switched on in flight, as long as they were on “flight” mode and thus unable to receive or send transmissions. Since then, EASA has decided that, even used for transmission, these devices do not represent a risk to aviation safety. The airlines will now have to carry out investigations themselves to decide whether their aircraft can cope with these transmissions and decide whether they should equip them with the appropriate connection facility such as Wi-Fi. EASA considers that, over the next eight months, the airlines should have begun this adaptation process to allowing these devices to be used in flight, as they are in any other mode of transport. (MD)