FAA guidance makes it clear: There is no room for distraction in the cockpit

Recent incidents have revealed that airline pilots are using personal electronic devices, including laptop computers and cell phones, in the cockpit. In one well-publicized instance, two Northwest pilots were using their laptops in flight and lost situational awareness; they flew 150 miles past their destination.

It doesn't take a safety expert to realize there is no room for distraction when your job is to get people safely to their destinations.

There's a lot going on in today's cockpit; adding laptops and cell phones only complicates the mix

Our Federal Aviation Administration already has what's known as the "Sterile Cockpit Rule," prohibiting pilots from engaging in any type of distracting behavior during critical phases of flight. Today, the FAA is distributing an "Information for Operators" (InFO) guidance that asks the airlines to address distraction through crew training programs. It also asks that airlines create a safety culture to control cockpit distractions.

As USA Today's Alan Levin reports, we want airlines to develop a culture that creates "a top-to-bottom expectation that safety will be taken seriously—and that emphasizes eliminating distractions."

It's really very simple: engaging in tasks not directly related to required flight duties, including using personal electronic devices, constitutes a safety risk. The FAA can't have that.

And the flying public can't have it. They expect their pilots to focus on flying safely at all times. And rightly so.

In the past nine months, I have been on a tear, working to combat distracted driving in cars, in commercial trucks, in railroad locomotives, and in public transit. But the safety consequences of operator distraction in those vehicles pale in comparison to those of a commercial airliner.

Our aviation system has a terrific safety record, but we can only maintain that record by minimizing risk wherever possible, including in the cockpit.

Today's "InFO" guidance makes clear that, as FAA Administrator Randy Babbitt says, “Every aviation professional needs to take distractions in the cockpit seriously.”

Comments

[Michael E. Bailey]

This action is a critical step to ensure added safety in the air and everyone who has to do a lot of flying will greatly appreciate it. There have been 2 close calls involving commercial jets and small private planes--one in San Francisco, one in Burbank. It was not said if cell phones were being used but the planes came within a few feet of each other both times and each time there was clear weather. So it looks like someone was doing something other than paying attention to operating their aircraft. Outreach on the dangers of distracted operations of aircraft also need to be directed at the small private plane pilots. Best wishes, Michael E. Bailey.

[Robert Torn]

Distractions vary with the phase of flight and what needs to be done at the time. Stick to the facts and quit sensationalizing the incidents. The NWA 188 overflew MSP by 150 miles while under RADAR control, at no time was safety compromised, and they broke no company rules that allowed them computer access while in cruise, PERIOD. While popular to vilify the crew- the FAA POI signed off on that cockpit procedure, remember. There is plenty of blame for everyone, especially the FAA procedures for allowing it to go on so long, not having direct access to GUARD frequency nor mandating monitoring it, not following potential hijack procedures earlier, etc.
Popular culture promotes instant communications like texting and mobile phones and are tolerated while driving in most of the country. These are as bad a DWI but tolerated by citizens in their POVs. To say they are distracting is an understatement.
You forget that most of the NEXTGEN initiatives use similar procedures but that is OK? Data Link, cluttered situation displays, increased complexity procedures detract from situational awareness in most cases, but in others improve it so where is the balance? Laptop computers and other Electronic Flight Bags are different from personal ones only in their software and interference testing. How is that fundamentally safer? Is not talking between the crew below 10000 really better when the other pilot is distracted? Quietness is a symptom of overloading the mind so is that safer?
Distraction varies with the situation. Outside non-authorized PEDs are clearly outside the boundaries of safety but there is as much blame for the DOT and FAA in the NWA incident if "safety" was compromised.