A lawsuit, filed by the Association of Flight Attendants claiming that the Federal Aviation Administration acted improperly in allowing passengers to use gadgets during takeoff and landing, was killed by a DC appeals court.
If it seems odd that flight attendants would hate passenger-mollifying entertainment boxes, Ars Technica’s Cyrus Farivar explains that it was really about how much leeway the FAA has to change fight rules without consultation. From the AFA’s filing:
“When an agency proposes a controversial change in a rule that affects public safety, it must be made through the proper rule-making process, with the opportunity for public notice and comment. In this instance, Respondent circumvented the rule-making process and in doing so, failed to provide clear policyor guidance for securing and stowing [personal electronic devices] and failed to provide a study showing that PEDs held in hand or held in a seat back pocket would remain secure.”