Pilots are required to prepare for flights by obtaining weather briefings and making themselves familiar with all information pertaining to a flight. One of the key safety requirements is proper flight planning and taking along current aviation charts suitable for the flight.
Charts expire and new charts need to be purchased. New charts may show airspace changes, procedure changes for landing approaches as well as communications information. Keeping a fresh set of charts is a regular process for all pilots.
Over the last decade, the makers of charts have begun to offer electronic charts, often downloadable from the Internet, and fully approved for flight planning. A few portable electronics manufacturers have received approval from the FAA to replace flight charts with their mobile devices. These devices are known as Electronic Flight Bags. EFBs, typically cost over $1,000.
EFBs can do more than display charts, and designed to allow flight crews to perform flight duties including weight and balance calculations, flight planning and flight logging. Current EFB may include flight plan filing as well. Electronic check lists, aircraft information and electronic displays of flight weather may be included in an EFB device. Additionally, private pilots may use the same EFB to augment flight instruments in the aircraft. A moving map GPS can support flight operations by showing position, heading, ground speed, estimated time in route, estimate time of arrival, course and altitude estimates.
The history of EFBs started with pilots using notebook computers to help plan flights. Today, recreational and private pilots can use their Pilot in Command authority to approve the use of a EFB. Commercial pilots need to seek approval via their OpSpecs process, which defines commercial operations procedures.
Apple’s iPad is singularly the least expensive device currently offered as an EFB. Approval comes nearly on the eve of the highly reported and speculated announcement of a new iPad 2. Additional details about the certification of the iPad as a flight bag can be found here.
