This article was written using in part material kindly provided by Mr. Dave Allen
The gems in my collection
Among my travel gear accumulated over the years, I have two items that are really iconic and which are both on the way out. They are two leather flight bags, one from Jeppesen in the traditional shape and form that pilots have hauled with them for decades. The other is a flight bag created for Finnair in the 70’s and it has a peculiar shape, with the top narrower than the bottom. This bag was designed to fit between the pilots’ seat and the wall of the cockpit on the DC-8’s then flown extensively by the Finish carrier. The bag was a gift from one of their pilots who doubled as an IFALPA representative in some of the meetings we attended together. Although the Finnair bag shows its age, it is probably indestructible and will stay with me for many more years.
Pilots carried flight bags filled with charts and operating manuals, circular slide rules, headsets and other stuff, often representing a load item of 40 pounds or more. It was easy to recognize a pilot even if he or she was not wearing their stripes, the flight bag was a dead giveaway.
The utility, and possibly the aura, of this roomy but otherwise simple device was not lost on travel gear manufacturers and a flight bag shaped case is no longer an almost certain guarantee that its hauler is an aircraft driver.
But no problem, leather is being replaced by electronics and the traditional flight bag is slowly but surely giving way to the EFB or Electronic Flight Bag.
What is an EFB?
The concept of the EFB is relatively simple. Replace the paper-based material carried by pilots in traditional flight bags by an electronic information management device that brings additional functions to manipulate and display information dynamically and in a context sensitive environment. Other than reducing or replacing paper products, the EFB can also host purpose built applications that support or completely automate functions that were previously carried out by hand. Weight and balance, take-off performance, etc. are just a few examples of such applications.
FAA Advisory Circular AC No. 120-76A describes an Electronic Flight Bag as an “electronic display system intended primarily for cockpit/flight-deck or cabin use”.
So, you guessed it, the EFB is not a bag at all, unless you call this special computer a bag of tricks… which it most certainly is. EFB formats range from a PDA through a laptop to units actually bolted on the aircraft but its weight is in all cases just a fraction of the weight of a traditional flight bag and its paper based contents. It is also much more than just a display system since it runs applications, processes data and can, in some cases, talk to other on-board systems. A computer with a license if you like.
Where does the EFB come from?
Contrary to appearances, the cockpit and some systems of most aircraft types lagged behind the developments in the general IT field. For instance, the processing power of most Flight Management Systems (FMS) was so limited that even the cheapest laptops overtook it in no time at all. Some early Airbus A330s actually have a floppy disk slot near the forward galley… The very stringent certification requirements and associated costs kept the industry from upgrading in line with IT developments elsewhere.
In the circumstances it is not surprising that individual pilots took the initiative in the early 90s to bring their own laptops running common office applications like word processing and spread-sheets which they applied to weight and balance calculations and filling out various forms. Effective as those early attempts were, ordinary computers were not designed to withstand events like an explosive decompression and hence they could not completely replace paper products. But for a few years they still filled a gap, albeit without official blessing.
Early, official adopters of EFB-like hardware were FedEx in the US and AeroLoyd in Germany. Southwest Airlines and JetBlue soon followed suite, with a charter company called MyTravel which later merged with Thomas Cook airlines, having been the first to use cell-phone like communications for the delivery of electronic logs created on board, saving a lot of paper.
Other than passenger entertainment systems, few other parts of the aircraft evolved so closely with the general improvements of portable computers as the Electronic Flight Bag. Being able to hold aeronautical charts for the whole world in a package weighing much less than the paper versions was an obvious benefit but other applications like real time weather and moving map displays, made feasible by the increasing power of the underlying hardware, promised to make the EFB a truly powerful tool.
EFB classes and EFB application types
After the initial almost do-it-yourself phase of EFB development, the regulatory bodies, the FAA and EASA in the US and Europe respectively, got in on the act and developed the rules governing EFBs, establishing three EFB classes and three software classes. This was an important step forward, enabling manufacturers of both hardware and software to build to a common baseline.
A Class 1 EFB is just a standard laptop or handheld device and it is usually not bolted onto the aircraft. In fact, Class 1 EFBs are usually hiding in the leather kind of flight bag during critical phases of flight. Such an EFB is in fact considered a PED (Portable Electronic Device). As we know, PEDs may only be used on board aircraft if the operator has determined that it will not cause interference with the navigation and communications systems of the aircraft. The Class 1 EFB is not subject to certification but if it is connected to the aircraft power and/or other on board systems, the interface (typically a docking station) must be certified to assure non-interference with critical aircraft systems.
Class 2 EFBs are still in the PED category but they are typically either modified commercial models or purpose built equipment ruggedized in many respects to fit well with the cockpit environment. They are usually mounted in the aircraft in such a way that the display is visible to the pilot during all phases of flight. The mounting is a critical element of course and it may take the form of certified structural solutions or kneeboard type devices. A big difference between Class 1 and Class 2 EFBs is that the latter may connect to the aircraft power system and data sources and they may be used for bi-directional data communications with other aircraft systems. However, as part of the certification process, it has to be shown that the interface with aircraft systems does not interfere with those systems. This means there has to be a Part 25 approved component mediating the interface.
Class 3 EFBs are considered “installed equipment” and are subject to airworthiness requirements. They must also be under design control. The hardware of Class 3 EFBs must comply with a number of RTCA requirements applicable to non-essential equipment in respect of crash safety and EMC testing. Further requirements are applicable to the software in the EFB but this depends on the application type concerned. Class 3 EFBs are installed either as original equipment or retrofits under an STC. Some Class 3 EFBs have hardware/software partitions which basically make it a hybrid allowing Class 2 software to be updated without Part 25 approval.
EFB applications fall into one of three types.
Type A contains document viewers; electronic checklists; flight crew operating manuals and other printed documents like NOTAM; and flight performance calculations.
Type B applications are: Non-interactive electronic approach charts or approach charts that require panning, zooming, scrolling; head-down display for Enhanced Vision System (EVS), Synthetic Vision System (SVS) or video cameras; real-time weather data display, including weather maps;
Type C applications turn the EFB screen into a multi-function display that may also be used, among others, as an ADS-B traffic situation display system. Type C applications may only run on Class 3 EFBs.
It is of course possible to have most of the applications common to all three classes of EFBs and this offers a lot of flexibility to airlines to equip their fleets with the most appropriate combination of EFBs while maintaining common training and operating procedures.
What are the benefits of using EFBs?
The EFB is a major step toward e-enabling the entire air transport system, from the flight deck to the cabin, maintenance, and the airport. Through its unique combination of modular content, applications, and services that integrate the data generated by an entire flight operation, the EFB provides key, meaningful information to pilots, flight attendants, operations workers, mechanics and other personnel.
Airlines will realize many benefits with the EFB, including:
• Reduced fuel and maintenance costs through precise, accurate calculations. Current takeoff and landing calculations are conservative and often are based on early dispatch weight and balance information, which adds delay and cost to each flight. The EFB saves airlines costs while increasing payload by providing more accurate calculations based on real-time information. These calculations can result in lower thrust ratings, which reduce engine maintenance costs.
• Improved taxiway safety. The taxiway environment can be challenging for pilots, especially when visibility is limited or during the night at unfamiliar airports. The Class 3 EFB enhances pilot runway and taxiway situational awareness by integrating onboard georeferencing equipment (e.g., Global Positioning System [GPS] technology) with electronic airport taxi maps. Pilots have greater awareness of position — from the runway to the gate — which improves safety and reduces taxi time. (The Class 2 EFB presents a moving map of the airport but does not indicate current aircraft position.)
• Flight deck entry surveillance for compliance with current International Civil Aviation Organization recommendations. Class 2 and Class 3 EFB displays can host cabin-to-flight deck video feeds, providing airlines with flight deck entry surveillance.
• Future integration capabilities for e-enabled airlines. Initial implementations of the EFB allow connectivity through the terminal wireless local area network unit with other connection possibilities also accommodated.
• Elimination of paper from the flight deck and access to digital documents. Eliminating paper from the flight deck saves weight and reduces clutter. For example, without the EFB, a single 777-200ER flight requires 77 lb of paper. Accessing digital documents on the flight deck is an efficient, convenient way for pilots to quickly obtain the information they need. Configuration- controlled documents such as aeronautical charts, fault reporting and operations manuals, minimum equipment lists, and logbooks are available at the pilots’ fingertips. The distributed data management (DDM) system provides an airline logistics system to ensure that all aircraft have up-to-date information.
Are there wider implications?
The EFB was first put on aircraft as a simple replacement of the “leather” bag and its paper content but we have seen that applications quickly evolved to cover many other tasks from improving ground movement safety to cabin surveillance improving security.
It is not surprising that the quest was on to expand the use of the EFB capabilities so that they may further enhance the efficiency of an airline’s operations. An example of this is the Boeing Electronic Logbook (ELB) application that resides both on the aircraft and on multiple ground components.
An aircraft in the air is an asset. An aircraft that cannot meet its next departure cannot generate revenue. That reality is the impetus behind the ELB application. Because aircraft can only produce revenue when they are flying, the aviation infrastructure exists to keep them operating safely and efficiently. When an airline is forced to cancel a flight, the revenue from that flight may be lost and the disruption costs affect the airline bottom line. Yet aircraft are basically out of touch with the airline operations (except for some system messages and voice reports) most of the time. The system-generated failure messages many times do not provide enough information for airline maintenance to provide a solution in the time necessary to support the next dispatch. Pilot workload many times precludes using voice to communicate problems. As airlines increase aircraft utilization and reduce aircraft turnaround time, information to resolve issues becomes more important. The ELB connects the aircraft systems to the airline information technology infrastructure, providing data to the appropriate departments that allows them to strategically react to aircraft problems. This knowledge helps the airline schedule the aircraft operation so that all deferred faults can be resolved during a time when the aircraft is available, thereby reducing costs.
An ELB system replaces paper logbooks with computer-based logs that can be easily stored and shared — even if users are thousands of miles apart. At a minimum, an electronic logbook will do everything paper logbooks do today while making pilots’ logging tasks simpler and faster by providing easy-to-use, standardized fault-reporting tools. Approved ways have been developed to ensure secure, validated sign-off on the log-book that is legal just like the scribble on the paper version.
And the future?
The concept of an e-enabled airline does require certain adjustments in the enterprise processes and some investment in the new technology but the benefits can be substantial. Improved safety, reduced labor costs, more efficient operations are all within reach of an e-enabled airline and the EFB with its ever more powerful applications is a vital element of that new future.
But even if the EFB is there initially only as a more intelligent replacement for the traditional flight bag, its contribution to safety and efficiency cannot be over estimated. As the EFB is a multi-purpose computer with significant capability (computing and communication) it is difficult to imagine all of the potential benefits. The introduction of the EFB is similar to the introduction of personal computers. Those who received them in the 1980s could scarcely imagine how they would be used in the future. The EFB will become the platform for many new innovative applications to allow airlines to become more efficient as time goes on.
We have come a long way indeed from my trusty old leather bag…