Thanks to 9/11, we know what can bring down a plane. Box cutters and knives. Baby formula and hairspray, too. And nailclippers. Oh, no, wait — you can carry those onboard now. But just don’t pack an external hard disk drive.
Reader Drew Tipton witnessed the following event on a Delta Air Lines flight from Atlanta to Los Angeles last week. “The person across the aisle from me was using a hard drive,” he says. “The flight attendant noticed it, confiscated it, and gave it to the sky marshal on board.”
Indeed, Delta now lists external hard drives as verboten. It says the can’t be used “for safety reasons” on its flights, but doesn’t elaborate.
I asked my Transportation Security Administration contact if peripherals were on some kind of government list. Negative. Not only that, but the agency has no record of a hard drive being confiscated on a flight between Los Angeles and Atlanta on that day.
I also asked Delta for its side of the story. It has not responded.
I have seen no credible evidence that peripheral devices such as hard drives, pen drives or memory sticks can crash a plane.
But here’s what I have seen a lot more of recently. Flight attendants used to walk up and down the aisles to ask if you needed anything to make your flight more comfortable. Those were the good old days. Now they patrol the planes in search of contraband, like noise-canceling headsets, PDAs and computer peripherals.
And some — not all, but some — really seem to take pleasure in either confiscating these “dangerous” devices or forcing you to turn them off. Or even calling the cops on you in extreme cases like Tipton’s.
Personally, I think it’s time for a little common sense at 36,000 feet. No external hard drive has ever brought a plane down. Same goes for headsets, iPods and smartphones.
Free the electronics. Now.
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It’s a little stretch but because of the high frequencies involved which are being transmitted over a cable, it is possible (low possibility) that there could be RF radiation which could interfere with the aircraft’s navigation systems. This is similar to radios and TVs (even AM/FM which are notorious radiators). RF shielding in these devices is nowhere as effective as the shielding inside a laptop.
As it is not a weapons issue, TSA doesn’t care. It is a restriction imposed by Delta Engineering.
Just sit down, shut and do NOT even think of doing anything.
Noise canceling headsets? Delta and American hand the out on international flights in first and business class. I’ve never heard of that one before.
The problem with security now is that because anyone can exercise authority without check because of ‘terrorism,’ you have no recourse at all.
If the person complained to Delta about the drive, instead of a proper investigation, Delta would probably blacklist you since, well, in the name of security, anything is permissible. Safety is paramount. Right. You see, questioning anyone about anything can be seen as ‘interfering with a crew member in the exercise of their duties.’ In fact, we are now so safe, that we are no longer free. But, you feel safe now, don’t you?
Just sit down, shut and do NOT even think of doing anything.
Noise canceling headsets? Delta and American hand the out on international flights in first and business class. I’ve never heard of that one before.
The problem with security now is that because anyone can exercise authority without check because of ‘terrorism,’ you have no recourse at all.
If the person complained to Delta about the drive, instead of a proper investigation, Delta would probably blacklist you since, well, in the name of security, anything is permissible. Safety is paramount. Right. You see, questioning anyone about anything can be seen as ‘interfering with a crew member in the exercise of their duties.’ In fact, we are now so safe, that we are no longer free. But, you feel safe now, don’t you?
Here is Deltas go/no-go list:
For safety reasons, you may not operate the following devices onboard:
* Two-way transmitters such as walkie-talkies, amateur radios, citizen band (CB) radios, 49 MHz transmitters – [Ok, that seems reasonable]
* Devices designed to radiate radio frequency energy on specific frequencies [huh? What ‘frequencies’ are a problem? Or jkust any transmitter?
* Peripheral devices for computers or games connected by cable – mice also?
* AM/FM radios – ok, seems reasonable since you cannot receive anyway at most altitudes –
* Portable television sets – ditto – but what about a portable DVD player – is that not also a TV?
* Remote control toys – this is a new one. But it says OPERATE, not possess.
If you read the next list, it states you can use peripherals connected by cable at altitude. So, which is it? Yes or No? They ban them in one section and let you use them in another.
Then there are GPS equipment – you can use them while at the gate and after taking off – but not on descent. I’ll let you know that many pilots bring personal GPS with them in the cockpit as not only back up but so they can actually see where they are.
Hmmm, I would not think that a flight attendant would give something to the air marshall. They are not supposed to identify the air marshalls.
Hmmmm…. “radiate radio frequency energy”? Does this mean that the new passports being issued by the US that contain RF chips would be prohibited????
“Noise canceling headphones”???? Oh PUH-LEEZE!!!!!! I’ve not heard of this one… Someone say it ain’t so!
I recently left a job where I traveled (38 states and 30 countries in 8 years) because it is just sooooo unpleasant these days! Between the rare counter person (when you can find one!), to the ridiculous security lines (although I appreciate the need for security), to the surly gate agents, to the flat-out bitter flight attendants, to the cost cutting “nickel and dime ya to death” attitude of the airlines…… I can’t imagine getting on a flight to anywhere anytime soon.
It’s as though the customer has no rights to any kind of service any more. We might as well all take the bus! It’s less expensive and the service is about the same! And what with all the delays, it takes about the same amount of time to reach your destination!
Dawn
PS: regarding the prohibition of Noise Canceling Headphones – does this mean they will prohibit the Noise Producing Brats that prompted my purchase of said headphones…? I’m just sayin’……..
Yes … noise-canceling headsets … some airlines consider them electronics and force passengers to turn them off during take-off and landings. I was just on a United flight and the flight attendant was adamant about turning off the headsets. It was the first time I had heard of that rule … but the FA said, “Turn them off or I confiscate them.”
It’s my understanding that the noise-cancelling headphones (and other devices like iPods and portable CD players) are forbidden during takeoff and landing because people wearing/using them cannot hear the safety instructions of the flight crew — not because they’ll bring down the plane. I know most people ignore the safety instructions anyway, but still, I don’t see the FAA making the announcements optional anytime soon.
Radio transmissions have, on some occasions, caused problems with the avionics of passenger aircraft. Not all the time, not under all conditions, and not in any kind of reliably repeatable way. All electrical and electronic devices emit small amounts of radio energy. Devices that use radio directly (GPS, TVs, AM/FM radio, ect) emit a lot more – that’s part of how they work. That’s why electronic devices are banned below 10,000 ft on take off and during the final stages of decent. This rule was in place long before any of the security theater related to terrorism was in place. It’s one of the few passenger-hostile rules that actually has a reasonable and rational basis.
If quiet is what you are looking for, foam ear plugs are comfortable and only cost a few cents in quantity. The E.A.R. brand is my favorite.
Have any of you people actually placed any of these devices next to navigational instruments to see what happens?
I am doubting it, cos if you saw what a lot of electronic equipment can do to the readouts and performance of a lot of sensitive instruments, you would be the ones volunteering to turn off your headsets, mobiles etc first whenever you got on a plane.
It’s not a major issue (and certainly not a security issue), but it is an issue of courtesy to the pilots who sometimes get interference on their instruments, and frankly you are being selfish if you can’t turn off your damn headphones for 10 minutes.
From the boeing website:
Operators of commercial airplanes have reported numerous cases of portable electronic devices affecting airplane systems during flight. These devices, including laptop and palmtop computers, audio players/recorders, electronic games, cell phones, compact-disc players, electronic toys, and laser pointers, have been suspected of causing such anomalous events as autopilot disconnects, erratic flight deck indications, airplanes turning off course, and uncommanded turns. Boeing has recommended that devices suspected of causing these anomalies be turned off during critical stages of flight (takeoff and landing). The company also recommends prohibiting the use of devices that intentionally transmit electromagnetic signals, such as cell phones, during all phases of flight. The U.S. Federal Communications Commission already prohibits the use of cell phones during flight. In addition, the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration issued Federal Aviation Regulation 91.21 to make operators responsible for governing the use of portable electronic devices on their airplanes.
As for the reasons for electronics and headsets – the headset rule is pretty simple. Most aircraft accidents occur on take off and landing and if you are wearing a headset you may not either hear the evacuation command or understand instructions. Thats common sense and I can see the operational safety reasons for doing so. They do not want your attention buried in song or a movie.
The electronics issue is thornier. Under 10,000 and in terminal airspace, there is little use of non VOR navigation; most aircraft are on radar vectors – as in “American 167 fly heading 280 intercept the ILS [instrument landing system] for Runway 31″ or fly heading XXX cleared for the visual approach. At that point, there is no real need for electronic navigation if the approach is visual. The ILS receivers in the aircraft are pretty safe from stray electromagnetic sources.
It is true that some of the screens and other displays have been interfered with by various types of passenger electronics. In my own aircraft, I have seen my own approved aircraft electronic interfere with other approved aircraft electronics – the ILS receiver when tuned to certain frequencies will block the GPS antenna from receiving a signal – so – it does happen.
Good comments. As to “Hmmmm…. “radiate radio frequency energy”? Does this mean that the new passports being issued by the US that contain RF chips would be prohibited?”
No. At least not for that reason! The rule prevent the devices in that list from being _operated_ on board. RFID chips do not continuously radiate. They are only active when a special detection unit (reader) is put into close proximity of the RFID and then it will weakly transmit (using the energy from the reader as there is no battery). So unless Immigration is checking passports on board…..
Noise cancelling headphones a problem? I hear BETTER when I have my headset turned on! Since the CD or DVD player has to be turned off during takeoff and landing, there is no extra sound being pushed to my ears. The noise cancelling headphones do NOT block the human voice – only the constant hum, etc. of engines, etc. Headphones do not emite radio frequencies.
I have tested PCs in airplanes, and depending on where you sit, it CAN interfere with navigation equipment. Some of the new PCs have the wireless device turned on and it will also interfere – if you use your PC in flight, make sure you turn off the wireless connection (and bluetooth.)
This is insane. I need my drive to do my work, and I need to work on the plane. If my drive can make it through security with no problem, what the hell is Delta’s issue? I’m not flying Delta again until this policy goes away. Period.
It seems that Delta no longer considers external hard drives a “threat”…
http://www.delta.com/traveling_checkin/inflight_services/connectivity/personal_electronic_devices/index.jsp
You know that is really amazing. One minute the peripherals are not allowed, the next they are. Do you think we had something to do with that? Only thing that still puzzles me is why Delta pr won’t answer my questions. If I were paranoid, I’d think I’m on some kind of list. ;-)
Use an external drive that plugs directly into the computer, like a flash drive or micro hard drive. The cable can act as an antenna to increase the range of the interference.
Delta doesn’t ban possession of an external harddrive on their flights. They do ban OPERATION of them, under the ” Peripheral devices for computers or games connected by cable” clause someone quoted above. Given the poor quality cables I’ve seen (operating in the 480MHz and up range for USB 2.0 and Firewire), I’m not sure I’d argue with them. I regularly bring one external drive with me, and sometimes as many as three; never had a problem with cabin crew or TSA. (I’ve heard from a colleague, though, that the new 750GB and larger hard drives may be susceptible to damage from the X-ray machine if it’s turned up to maximum power; consider asking for a hand-check of the drive, and be prepared to hook it up to your laptop and show’em it’s real.)
Non-aviation rated GPS receivers are designed to fail to operate in a very obvious way at speeds over those obtainable in an ordinary automobile. (I don’t know the real cut off; it’s probably under 130MPH.) The manufacturer doesn’t want the non-aviation rated gear being used by fliers; it’s not tested in that environment and they’re not being paid (through a higher purchase price) to assume the liability of aviation operation for the device. Pilots use their GPS’s because they’re better shielded and better tested and they’re legally sold as usable for piloting.
I’ve had the argument about active-noise-surpression gear with flight attendants, even pointing out that Bose uses the same electronics in the headset the pilot is using as in the headphones I’m wearing. But I’ve since seen the difference in build quality between what Bose sells consumers and what they sell to pilots, and I am no longer so sure; I just turn’em off but leave’em on my head. The occasional FA asks me to remove them completely, and I comply there as well; life’s too short to spend a day explaining to some TSA suit why I was unnecessarily being a jerk.
A poster wrote:
“Non-aviation rated GPS receivers are designed to fail to operate in a very obvious way at speeds over those obtainable in an ordinary automobile. (I don’t know the real cut off; it’s probably under 130MPH.) ”
That is not true. I have a fairly basic hiking GPS which has a mode that displays one’s moving speed. On a recent flight where I asked and received permission to turn my GPS on above 10,000 feet, the speed display showed between 500 and 529 MPH. There would be no reason whatsoever to design a GPS to not display fast speeds.
I can confirm Steve P’s comment about normal GPS receivers working on airplanes. I have a Garmin eTrex Vista and it works fine on airplanes, you just have to hold it up to a window. At crusing altitudes, I usually get somewhere around 500-550 mph. Plus, I can figure out where we’re at. I’m surprised that a FA let you use it directly, normally I have to sneak mine out. I don’t think there is any consistent policy between airlines on these devices.
These aren’t government run airlines, and this isn’t communist eastern europe. It is a capitalists society for the time being, and if these companies decide to make silly rules (which will hurt their business) then that is their prerogative. Fly another airline, or take a train.
The only *real* problem here are the periodic tax-payer bailouts of the airlines that crush innovation and stifle competition. That and the governments antiquated air traffic control system that creates a literal bonfire to burn away all potential airline profit with late planes and congestion.
At radio frequencies, the fuselage of an airplane is, essentially, a reverberation chamber. It is a metal box long enough to have standing waves at communication frequencies. The reason that airlines ask you to turn off electronic devices during take-off and landing is that they don’t want to rely on the shielding of the equipment they’re using to operate the plane being well designed, completely up to code, and well maintained.
If everyone on the plane was allowed to keep all of their electronic gear on, imagine this analogy: There are 500 people in a cathedral, all talking loudly, and someone is trying to have a very important phone conversation in the middle of it. Chances are reasonable that the person can still communicate on the phone, but it’s a hell of a lot harder to hear and be heard. When that conversation is between the pilot’s controls and the tail wing, I, personally, wouldn’t mind being quiet for a few minutes.
The sad part is that most people have no idea what radiates RF energy and what doesn’t, so if it has a battery, it’s a suspect. It’s a PITA, and they often sweat the wrong details. However, given recent airplane maintenance track records, having a little safety extra margin during take-off and landing isn’t such a terrible idea.
They don’t have to be rude about it though…
On the following:
Non-aviation rated GPS receivers are designed to fail to operate in a very obvious way at speeds over those obtainable in an ordinary automobile. (I don’t know the real cut off; it’s probably under 130MPH.) The manufacturer doesn’t want the non-aviation rated gear being used by fliers; it’s not tested in that environment and they’re not being paid (through a higher purchase price) to assume the liability of aviation operation for the device. Pilots use their GPS’s because they’re better shielded and better tested and they’re legally sold as usable for piloting.
……….
My Garmin indicated 1100 km/hr eastbound with a decent tail wind one trip.
And it gave ground track most of the way to Vienna on a trip there. Metric airliner company, Austrian Airlines. Of course that is translated from the German name.
Was a great trip, even had a ride on the Orient Express.
Hi there, really great article.
I recently came from Mexico City to the United States with Mexicana and I couldn’t believe it!
They took away my EMPTY 0.5 l water bottle that I purchased at the airport (after doing the security check).
Than they took away a very expensive cream tube of 200ML (full) – because on a plane nowadays you are only allowed to take a 100ML bottle/tube with you – BUT IT WAS ALMOST EMPTY!
The third crazy thing was that they confiscated a small roll of tape (I’m traveling with my “office” in my laptop bag) – because I could toggle/gag somebody with a meter of tape!
For the electronic devices I always thought it is a scam (as I believe in the conspiracy theory) – to control people and to cut off communication between the passengers and the rest of the world.
As I’m a big traveling-fan I’m very sad to see with how much fanaticism they handle security at airports.
So please people… don’t believe everything you hear/see…
Peace and love
PS:Sorry for my double post but I think this page has much more visitors…