Measure turbulence while you fly

If you fly regularly, you will routinely experience turbulence. Although it is routine, it can be worrisome to some air travelers who are already anxious flyers. Most of the time the amount of turbulence is very small, and although the flight crew may reassure passengers either before or after encountering turbulence, they don't provide passengers with any kind of objective measures for turbulence, and passengers had no easy way of finding out on their own.

That has all changed with the release of the new SOAR Fear of Flying smartphone app. Available in versions for iPhone, iPad, and for Android devices, the app includes a G-force meter that you can use to chart the amount of turbulence that you are personally experiencing. An example of this screen is below:

Get the app today!
The app is free, and can be downloaded by clicking the image below or by clicking here:

How to prevent thefts by TSA employees when you fly

Several recent media reports highlighted a number of alleged and admitted thefts by TSA employees, and these stories serve as a reminder to passengers that while most TSA employees are honest and fully dedicated to protecting the public, a rare few will steal from passengers.

TSA employee sells stolen items on craigslist
A January 20, 2012 Miami Herald story described the arrest of a TSA employee who allegedly stole items from checked luggage, smuggled them out using a hidden pocket added to his TSA uniform jacket, and sold several items, including at least one iPad, on craigslist. This scheme reportedly had been going on for about three years. This TSA employee's wife was also charged.

How to prevent this from happening
Do not pack expensive and easy to sell valuable items such as laptops, money, or jewelry in your checked bag. On US flights, checked baggage must either be left unlocked, or use approved locks that can be opened by the TSA, so that the TSA can inspect checked luggage. This same advice would apply to a couple who had $500 stolen from their checked bag in December 2011 at the Punta Gorda, FL airport, though it is not clear if a TSA employee was involved in that theft.

Laptops stolen from screening area by TSA employee
A New York Post story reported a January 10, 2012 incident where a college student who forgot his laptop in a screening area at New York's LaGuardia Airport and had the laptop allegedly stolen by a TSA screener. The now-fired TSA employee was reportedly seen seen on a surveillance video taking the laptop and later admitted to the theft when confronted by a TSA supervisor.

Last October, another former TSA employee was convicted of stealing a laptop left at the screening area at the Memphis airport. Like the LaGuardia theft, this one was aslo caught on surveillance video.

How many TSA employees are theives?
A May 2011 New York Press stated that about 500 TSA employees had been fired or suspended because of thefts from passenger luggage. A February 2008 blog post on the TSA web site stated that the TSA had fired or sought prosecution for 200 TSA employees accused of theft. Some of those theft victims were other TSA employees. This means that on average, about 50 thieves had been discovered within the TSA each year.

How to prevent this from happening
If you travel with a laptop, make sure that you retrieve it after you pass through the TSA screening area. There are several things that you can do, including having some kind of reminder that you packed a laptop. For example, you can open up your backpack or laptop bag so that it is clear that something should be put back into it.

If you travel in a group, have the first person to make it through screening make sure that everyone's valuables are accounted for. Also, TSA lets you keep iPads, Kindles, and smaller notebook computers like the 11-inch MacBookAir in your carry-on bag when you go through screening.

Laptops are not the only things stolen
Last July, the the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported that a former TSA employee at the Ft. Lauderdale airport admitted to taking a passenger's $450 pen. According to a statement by the former employee, the theft didn't happen at the screening area, but after the pen was set aside by the TSA, presumably as an item that was headed to the TSA's lost and found department.

Change the TSA can believe in
Sometimes the money left by passengers as they go through TSA screening isn't stolen, because the TSA can legally keep it. According to a December 2011 Los Angeles Times article, loose change left behind by passengers can be kept by the TSA and used to help fund the agency's operations. In the 2010 fiscal year, this spare change added up to more than $375,000.

What can you do to prevent theft?
While passengers can't do anything to prevent a rogue TSA employee from stealing from you, there is quite a bit that you can do to prevent thefts from happening in the first place. For more details, download out the AirSafe.com Baggage and Security Guide, which includes a number of articles on how you can pack your carry on or checked bag so that you reduce or eliminate the chance that you will be a victim of theft the next time you fly (available as a PDF file, or as an ebook for our iPad or Kindle). You can find similar advice at the baggage resources page at AirSafe.com

Will your pilot use an iPad in the cockpit?

For most consumers, the personal electronics revolution of the past 20 years has meant massive changes in the kinds of affordable technology that we use at home, at work, or back in the passenger cabin. In the front of the aircraft, change doesn't happen very quickly. Innovations like GPS or even digital displays often take a slow and winding path over several years before the FAA would approve them for use in the cockpit.

It seems that this process has been sped up considerably in the case of the iPad. Less than a year after the iPad was initially offered to the general public, the FAA has allowed air charter company Executive Jet Management, which is a subsidiary of Warren Buffet's NetJets company, to use Apple’s iPad, combined with a specific software application, as an approved alternative to paper charts. Not only has this electronic device been approved for aviation use, it has been approved without any major design changes. Other likely early adopters would include companies providing Private Jet Charter services.

According to February 2011 Wired magazine article, the FAA approval process included demonstrating that an iPad could endure a rapid decompression from a simulated altitude of 51,000 feet and still provide critical navigation information. Prior to approval, Executive Jet Management also developed procedures for dealing with system or software crashes and other situations that are described in detail in FAA Advisory Circular 120-76A, which deals with requirements for electronic flight bags.

At present, this means that only those few passengers who fly in sleek corporate jets may see their pilot carrying an even sleeker iPad rather than a bulky case full of paper charts, but that may change soon. Rather than carting around suitcase-sized flight bag stuffed with dozens of charts and other reference materials, your pilot will be able to add to as many materials as he or she may need for the safe conduct of your flight. After all, no matter how many electronic documents are in an iPad, the weight doesn't change.

This is another innovation that may mean improved safety at all levels of aviation. While the iPad has been popular with pilots since its introduction last year, until now it had not been approved for use by the FAA either as a replacement for traditional paper charts or as a replacement for currently approved, but much more expensive, electronic flight bags. While the iPad can be purchased for several hundred dollars, most electronic flight bags cost at least several thousand dollars.

Coming soon to a major airline near you?
This first FAA approval for using the iPad in the cockpit gives airlines the opportunity to do the same. Currently, Alaska Airlines has about 100 pilots evaluating the iPad, and a spokesperson for Jeppesen; the Boeing-owned subsidiary that provides aeronautical charting and navigation services, including the TC Mobile software application in the recently approved iPad system; claims that several air carriers are interested in using the system as well.

Check it out for yourself
This is one of those rare situations where the average passenger, at least those who own iPads, can easily use and evaluate the same FAA approved equipment that a pilot can use. The TC Mobile application is free, and can be found through your iTunes app or online at the iTunes store. While the app is free and has free demonstration charts, downloading and using real aeronautical charts will cost you.

Other iPad Articles at AirSafeNews.com
Airline travel issues and the iPad
TSA Says you can keep your iPad, Kindle, or netbook in your bag

Full disclosure: Neither the author or AirSafe.com was compensated for this article by Boeing, Executive Jet Management, NetJets, Jeppesen, Apple, or by any other company or individual. The author also admits that he has the app on his iPad and thinks it looks really cool.

TSA Says You Can Keep your iPad, Kindle, or Netbook in Your Bag

On Monday, this column discussed airline travel issues related to the new iPad device from Apple, and suggested that it didn't make sense to treat it like a laptop and take it out for separate screening. It looks like the TSA agrees with AirSafe.com. On Tuesday, an article in the TSA's blog stated that electronics smaller than the standard laptop could stay in your carry on bag or carrying case and does not have to be screened separately by their x-ray machines at the security checkpoint.

The TSA blog article emphasized that TSA security officers may still give your bag or electronic device a secondary screening, so be prepared to take out your iPad or other device if asked. Although all TSA screeners are regularly informed about policy changes, some TSA screeners may not be aware of this new policy about smaller electronics, so don't be too upset if you still get asked to remove them.

What can you keep in your carry on?
The TSA blog article stated that the following types of devices can be kept in your bag: netbook computers, laptop computers in a checkpoint friendly laptop bag, iPads, Kindles, Noes, Nooks, and Sony Readers. This also implies that cell phones, Blackberries, personal DVD players, iPods, iPhones, PDAs, electronic cameras, and handheld computer games can also stay in the bag.

What do you have to take out for separate screening?
The TSA article listed the following items that must be taken out for separate screening: regular size laptops; video game consoles such as those from Playstation, Xbox, and Nintendo; full sized DVD players, video cameras that use cassettes, and other larger electronic devices. For the large game consoles, the TSA implied that you should take out the large CPU type unit for separate screening. Presumably accessories such as the the handheld controllers can stay in your bag.

What is the difference between a netbook and a laptop?
While opinions vary on what is and what isn't a netbook, in general it is a small laptop computer with a diagonal screen size of less than 12 inches (25.4 cm). The typical netbook also doesn't have an internal CD/DVD drive, so if your laptop has one, it probably isn't a netbook.

About checkpoint friendly bags
If you intend to use a "checkpoint friendly" laptop bag for your full size laptop, make sure to check that:

• It has a designated laptop-only section that you can lay flat on the X-ray belt
  
  
• There are no metal snaps, zippers or buckles inside, underneath or on-top of the laptop-only section
  
  
• There are no pockets on the inside or outside of the laptop-only section
  
  
• There is nothing in the laptop compartment other than the laptop
  
  
• You have completely unfolded your bag so that there is nothing above or below the laptop-only section, allowing the bag to lie flat on the X-ray belt

TSA will not approve or endorse any bag design or manufacturer. TSA will only allow laptops to stay in bags through screening if they provide a clear and unobstructed X-ray image of the laptop.

More baggage advice
Items prohibited and restricted by the TSA
Baggage basics
Carry on baggage tips
Top baggage tips

Airline travel issues and the iPad

Apple recently released their new iPad computer. While much of the media coverage has focused on the technological innovations and limitations of the device, AirSafeNews.com has a different focus - how this type of computer will affect the average air traveler. After a couple of days of testing and evaluation, AirSafeNews.com's Todd Curtis has a few thoughts about this machine, and some of the issues this device may raise for air travelers.

Security issues and the iPad
For years, airline passengers have been required to take out laptops and other large electronic devices out of their carry on baggage for separate screening at checkpoints. The classic laptop computer opens up like a clam shell to reveal a keyboard and a screen. Given the design of the iPad (it has no keyboard) and it's relatively small size and light weight (much smaller and lighter than the average Oprah magazine), it does not make sense to treat this device as one would a laptop computer. In other words, there is no real need to take it out for separate screening.

One could certainly make the argument that it is possible that someone bent on destroying an aircraft could pack an iPad with explosives, making it necessary to separately screen the device. However, the counter argument is that there are many other items (including the aforementioned Oprah) that have much more room to work with than an iPad, and that don't have to be taken out of your carry on bag. Unless there is some other compelling circumstance, for example, a passenger selected for special screening, there is no reason for TSA to worry about an exploding iPad.

You should also take steps to protect your iPad from loss, theft, or damage. First, don't put it in checked baggage. The risk of damage from rough handling and theft is always high for expensive and fragile items like electronics. Also, if you are asked to check your carry on at the last minute, be sure to take out your iPad and other small and valuable items from your carry on and place them in a smaller bag that can fit under your seat.

Going online in the airport and in the air
While iPads have many functions that work without having access to the Internet, most of the really interesting functions require that you be online. Fortunately, airports around the US are embracing the use of free wi-fi in the terminals, making it easy to get online before you get on the plane. Only a handful of airlines offer any kind of in flight Internet access, so make sure you have your music, books, and videos loaded into your iPad before you take off.

In flight entertainment and common sense
While the iPad is not very convenient for doing typical business related functions like creating or editing documents, it is an excellent device for web surfing and video playing in small spaces like the typical seat back tray in coach. Given an estimated battery life of 10 hours, a passenger can provide entertainment during a transatlantic or transpacific flight.

Because of its ability to play very high resolution videos, it will be a great platform for playing movies, with better performance that most laptops when it comes to brightness and clarity.

The potential problem with that will be the choice of material and whether it is appropriate for an airline cabin. The iPad can also function as a giant iPod, and can play videos or movies stored in its memory. As AirSafe.com pointed out in an article about the appropriate use of personal electronic devices, there few airline policies that deal with what a passenger can or can't do with their personal entertainment devices. One common sense thing you should do is use headphones so that you don't disturb other passengers.

While there may not be any laws restricting what you can play on your iPad, any passenger with an iPad should use their common sense when it comes to videos and movies, especially when it comes to material that may be upsetting to your seatmate. For example, I'll have a personal rule of avoid playing in flight any of the plane crash related videos produced by AirSafe.com. To get an idea of what you won't be seeing on my iPad while I'm flying, check out the AirSafe.com video channel at YouTube.