Call to Action--Congress Knee Jerk Reaction

[roz]

OK, we all know the pilots of the NWA/DAL flight messed up by losing situational awareness. Now, Congress (that twitters and does other stuff while in session) wants to ban laptops. Now we'll have the laptop police. Nice.

Write your members of congress and tell them that this is a knee jerk reaction. Let the FAA that knows about airlines put forth regulations, not Congress that knows nothing. Do we want Congress micromanaging the cockpit? How about ensuring Congress doesn't Twitter and engage in other activities that distract them from the important taxpayer paid business of Congress?

It's easy to write them--you can just send an email. Believe it or not, they have staff that log in the emails and calls--so your opinion counts!

Here's the press release:

Congress Moves to Ban Cockpit Laptops
Lawmakers Working on a Bill in Aftermath of Northwest Airlines Incident with Distracted Pilots


(AP) Lawmakers are moving to ban the use of computer laptops and other personal electronic devices in airline cockpits to prevent another incident like the Northwest Airlines plane that overshot Minneapolis by 150 miles.

Sen. Byron Dorgan, chairman of the aviation subcommittee, said in an interview that his staff is working on a bill that he expects to introduce in about a week. He said he was surprised to learn after the Oct. 21 incident that the Federal Aviation Administration doesn't specifically prohibit pilots from using laptops, DVD players, MP3 players and other devices during flight except below 10,000 feet while the plane is taking off or landing.

The two pilots of Northwest Flight 188 told National Transportation Safety Board investigators that they didn't notice repeated attempts by air traffic controllers and airline dispatchers to contact them because they were working on a new crew scheduling program on their laptops. The plane carrying 144 passengers was out of communication with anyone on the ground for 91 minutes, prompting the military to ready fighter jets for launch and the White House situation room to alert senior White House officials.

The plane zoomed past its Minneapolis destination before the pilots were alerted to their situation by a flight attendant. By that time, the plane was over Wisconsin.

"We now understand from this flight at least that this can happen and there ought to be a more clear understanding by everyone in the cockpit that there is a national standard that would prohibit this and that they need to take it seriously," said Dorgan, D-N.D.

Delta Air Lines, which acquired Northwest last year, has a policy prohibiting the use of personal laptops by pilots during flight. The airline has suspended the two pilots - Timothy Cheney of Gig Harbor, Wash., the captain, and Richard Cole of Salem, Ore., the first officer - pending an investigation. The FAA has revoked the pilots' licenses, and the NTSB is investigating the cause of the incident.

Dorgan said he expects his proposal to eventually be wrapped into a larger aviation bill pending before the Senate. He also said he doesn't anticipate any opposition to the measure.

Sen. Robert Menendez, D-N.J., has also said he wants to introduce legislation to prohibit pilots from using laptops and other personal devices during flight, and several other senators expressed support for a ban at a hearing last week.

Dorgan said his bill will make an exception for "electronic flight bags" - laptops containing navigational tools issued to pilots by some airlines.

[Brenda]

Good grief! Absolutely ridiculous, so are they going to have cameras in all the flight decks to make sure pilots aren't doing anything non work related, like, hmm, drink a cup of coffee?? Thanks for sharing this Roz!

[roz]

Cameras would be fine. DH says they need something on which to hang that useless hat (he would actually start wearing it for that!).

[Brenda]

[flygirl813126]

So is this something they would do just for airlines, or are they going to blanketly apply this to all flying below 10k? I am pretty sure the gps that I have used is a handheld electronic...does that make it dangerous? How about the jeppesen software that is on a laptop? (sorry...end knee jerk rant )

[roz]

It's in the "we're drafting legislation" stage. So, now's the time to write, call, badger your elected officials because they don't know what they don't know.

[Kristie]

that's nucking futz!

do they realize the work that the pilots will have to do if they have to talk to dispatch and can't get a clear connection? doug says he uses his phone all the time talking to ramp, scheduling, maintenance etc.

they'd have to leave the cockpit, go up the jetway to the terminal to make those various calls which...duh duh DAH!...means more flights DELAYED!

there's already a policy on laptops....i think that takes care of it....

horribly bad idea by lawmakers who don't know how the system runs.

geez, one persons mistake is someone else's torture for career lifetime....what's up with that?

[Kristie]

here you go ladies....you can email the man himself!

from JC:

I see where you're going with this, and usually, I'd agree with you. However, Dorgan was my senator for 5 years, and he has been great for aviation. I for one was surprised when I saw he had proposed this, he's usually pretty good about pilot and general aviation rights.

He is the chairman of the Aviation Operations, Safety and Security Subcommittee, so as with anything in Congress, if you don't like it, let them know. Contact Information | Byron L. Dorgan — United States Senator, North Dakota

[roz]

Good--but you also need to email your own elected officials--they listen to constituents more than the general public. Votes count. Remember all politics is local.

[spotty4]

Cameras would be fine. DH says they need something on which to hang that useless hat (he would actually start wearing it for that!).

Awesome.