§ Mr. Shersbyasked the Secretary of State for Transport if, in view of concern among airline pilots about the effect of personal radios, calculators and similar equipment, particularly that which includes the use of light-emitting displays, on aircraft instruments during flight, he will prohibit the use of such equipment by passengers in the interests of aircraft safety.
§ Mr. David MitchellCivil aircraft safety is the statutory responsibility of the Civil Aviation Authority. In recent discussions between representatives of airline pilots and the authority about the inflight operation of passengers' personal electronic equipment no great concern was expressed by the pilots, and the very few incidents which have been reported to the authority have not been hazardous.
Guidance on the subject was published by the authority in June 1982 with a recommendation to pilots and operators to monitor the use of such equipment. The aircraft commander has the authority to require any or all devices to be turned off at any time.
Presently the authority is participating with airlines in tests to establish what interference if any is possible. The need for a general prohibition will be decided after the results of these tests are available.