JetBlue and American Airlines Giving iPad Electronic Flight Bags to All Pilots

NewImageBoth JetBlue and American Airlines have announced they are issuing iPads to all pilots to replace the heavy paper manuals in flight phases.

American says it is the first major commercial carrier to deploy Electronic Flight Bags (EFB) throughout their entire fleet, and the airline has decided to discontinue paper revisions of pilot flight manuals.

The airline estimates it will save more than 400,000 gallons of fuel per year, worth $1.2 million at current prices.

JetBlue announced today that it has also received FAA approval to issue iPads to its pilots, with some added capabilities that are unique to the airline. Because JetBlue is introducing in-flight Wi-Fi across all its aircraft, its pilots will be able to receive real-time weather and document updates in-flight.

Following a successful trial phase with approximately 60 pilots over several months, JetBlue already has begun giving all 2,500 pilots a fourth-generation 16 GB Wi-Fi capable Apple iPad. While JetBlue has been approved for a decade to use a PC-based laptop in the cockpit – called an Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) – the iPads will offer new capabilities and conveniences, especially as JetBlue implements Ka-Band satellite Wi-Fi.

JetBlue pilots will use WSI Optima for weather updates, Comply365 for digital documents, and a third app for aircraft performance, weight and balance calculations. JetBlue will roll out its electronic flight bags over the next three months.

Popular Stories

iOS 26

iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 Will Add These New Features to Your iPhone

Tuesday February 3, 2026 7:47 am PST by
We are still waiting for the iOS 26.3 Release Candidate to come out, so the first iOS 26.4 beta is likely still at least a week or two away. Following beta testing, iOS 26.4 will likely be released to the general public in March or April. Below, we have recapped known or rumored iOS 26.3 and iOS 26.4 features so far. iOS 26.3 iPhone to Android Transfer Tool iOS 26.3 makes it easier...
Apple Logo Black

Apple's Next Launch is 'Imminent'

Sunday February 1, 2026 12:31 pm PST by
The calendar has turned to February, and a new report indicates that Apple's next product launch is "imminent," in the form of new MacBook Pro models. "All signs point to an imminent launch of next-generation MacBook Pros that retain the current form factor but deliver faster chips," Bloomberg's Mark Gurman said on Sunday. "I'm told the new models — code-named J714 and J716 — are slated...
iOS 26 Home Feature

Apple Gives Final Warning to Home App Users

Tuesday February 3, 2026 8:55 am PST by
In 2022, Apple introduced a new Apple Home architecture that is "more reliable and efficient," and the deadline to upgrade and avoid issues is fast approaching. In an email this week, Apple gave customers a final reminder to upgrade their Home app by February 10, 2026. Apple says users who do not upgrade may experience issues with accessories and automations, or lose access to their smart...
Aston Martin CarPlay Ultra Screen

Apple's CarPlay Ultra to Expand to These Vehicle Brands Later This Year

Sunday February 1, 2026 10:08 am PST by
Last year, Apple launched CarPlay Ultra, the long-awaited next-generation version of its CarPlay software system for vehicles. Nearly nine months later, CarPlay Ultra is still limited to Aston Martin's latest luxury vehicles, but that should change fairly soon. In May 2025, Apple said many other vehicle brands planned to offer CarPlay Ultra, including Hyundai, Kia, and Genesis. In his Powe...
Apple Foldable Thumb

First Foldable iPhone Design Details Revealed

Monday February 2, 2026 7:19 am PST by
Apple's first foldable iPhone will feature relocated volume buttons, an all-black camera plateau, a smaller Dynamic Island, and more, according to design leaks from a known Weibo leaker. The user known as "Instant Digital" today claimed to share several key details about the design of the foldable iPhone: The volume buttons will be located on the top edge of the device, aligned to the...

Top Rated Comments

Alumeenium Avatar
165 months ago
help help is their an Apple Genius on board?

the Captain spilled Coffee on his iPad!!! :eek:
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
hjkl Avatar
165 months ago
I'm just curious how you know you're right, and why you're confident enough in your knowledge to possibly risk the safety of a plane full of people for your own convenience.

Common sense is just what it says: the sense of common people. This is not a substitute for the knowledge of experts. Thinking the gun is empty because you've spun the chamber 3 times and it hasn't gone off is what gets people killed.

This trend towards intuition over science, and "I don't understand it so it must be a conspiracy", is going to be the ruin of a nation.
Exactly!

Every time this subject comes up, I'm amazed at how many people feel that complete absence of technical understanding and education in such a deeply technical area is no barrier whatsoever to asserting an opinion (and in fact are willing to gamble other people's lives on their unfounded gut-feel).

I've spent 30 years designing electronic systems (including avionics and consumer electronics) and I'm still frequently surprised by the results we get in EMC test chambers.

As it happens, I do suspect that we will be able to relax the rules to some extent, once sufficient study has been done. The key, however, is the "sufficient study" bit - they certainly shouldn't be changed just because Joe Public's uninformed intuition says it's safe.

-- HJKL
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Analog Kid Avatar
165 months ago
Unauthorized wireless devices isn't a pilots vs. passenger thing. It's FAA vs. common sense. Since they want to cover themselves for possible lawsuits we all have to suffer. Meanwhile, there are thousands of flights daily with thousands of passengers (including me) using wireless during takeoff and landing.
I'm just curious how you know you're right, and why you're confident enough in your knowledge to possibly risk the safety of a plane full of people for your own convenience.

Common sense is just what it says: the sense of common people. This is not a substitute for the knowledge of experts. Thinking the gun is empty because you've spun the chamber 3 times and it hasn't gone off is what gets people killed.

This trend towards intuition over science, and "I don't understand it so it must be a conspiracy", is going to be the ruin of a nation.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
klover Avatar
165 months ago
And yet I still have to turn my Kindle off when ascending/decending.
Score: 4 Votes (Like | Disagree)
nepalisherpa Avatar
165 months ago
Ha, at first, I read the title as "JetBlue and American Airlines Giving iPad Electronic Flight Bags to All Passengers" and I was like "HOLY $417"!
Score: 3 Votes (Like | Disagree)
jacobj Avatar
164 months ago
been using iPad since it was released and it never failed me.

Well if yours hasn't failed then none of them will. It's just inductive reasoning. ;-)
Score: 2 Votes (Like | Disagree)