Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 172 / Wednesday, September 5, 2012 / Notices 54651 

1FAA Modernization and Reform Act of 2012, 

H.R. 658. 

2 47 CFR 22.925. 

3FAA Advisory Circular 91.21–1B, Use of 

Portable Electronic Devices Aboard Aircraft, August 

25, 2006. 

Issued in Fort Worth, Texas on August 21, 

2012. 

Kelvin L. Solco, 

Airports Division. 

[FR Doc. 2012–21146 Filed 9–4–12; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE P 

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION 

Federal Aviation Administration 

Study on the Use of Cell Phones On 

Board Aircraft 

AGENCY: Federal Aviation 

Administration (FAA), DOT. 

ACTION: Notice of availability and 

request for comments. 

SUMMARY: The FAA Modernization and 

Reform Act of 2012 (Pub. L. 112–95) 

directed the Administrator of the FAA 

to conduct a study on the impact of the 

use of cell phones for voice 

communications in an aircraft during a 

flight in scheduled air transportation. A 

draft report on this study is currently 

available for review and public 

comment at http://www.faa.gov/aircraft/ 

draft_docs/. 

DATES: Written comments must be 

received on or before November 5, 2012. 

ADDRESSES: Send comments identified 

as Cell Phone Study Comments using 

any of the following methods: 

• E-Mail: Send comments to 

CELLPHONEcomment@faa.gov. 

• Mail: Send comments to Avionics 

Maintenance Branch, AFS–360, Flight 

Standards Service, Federal Aviation 

Administration, 800 Independence 

Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20591. 

• Fax: Fax comments to (202) 385– 

6474. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For 

questions concerning this action, 

contact David B. Walen, Chief Scientific 

and Technical Advisor for Aircraft 

Electromagnetic Compatibility, Aviation 

Safety, Federal Aviation 

Administration, 1601 Lind Avenue SW., 

Renton, Washington 98057; telephone 

(425) 917–6586; facsimile (425) 917– 

6590; email dave.walen@faa.gov. 

Background 

The FAA Modernization and Reform 

Act of 2012 1 directed the Federal 

Aviation Administration (FAA) to 

conduct a study on the impact of the use 

of cell phones for voice communications 

in scheduled passenger air 

transportation and provide a 60-day 

opportunity for public comment. The 

Act also requires the FAA to report to 

Congress on the results of the study by 

Nov 10, 2012. Air carriers do not allow 

the use of cell phones on their airplanes 

in flight in US airspace, because Federal 

Communications Commission 

regulations prohibit the use of certain 

classes of cell phones while airborne.2

FAA guidance 3 supports this airborne 

restriction because of the potential for 

cell phone interference to aircraft 

systems and equipment. 

The FAA Modernization and Reform 

Act of 2012 section 410 directed the 

FAA to conduct a study on the impact 

of the use of cell phones for voice 

communications in scheduled passenger 

air transportation. The study included— 

(1) A review of foreign government 

and air carrier policies on the use of cell 

phones during flight; 

(2) A review of the extent to which 

passengers use cell phones for voice 

communications during flight; and 

(3) A summary of any impacts of cell 

phone use during flight on safety, the 

quality of the flight experience of 

passengers, and flight attendants. 

FAA requested information on these 

subjects from the national aviation 

authorities that have approved the 

installation of on-board cell phone base 

stations, and allowed the use of cell 

phones in flight on aircraft equipped 

with these base stations. The responses 

from these national aviation authorities 

were documented in the FAA report to 

address the requirements of FAA 

Modernization and Reform Act section 

410. 

In accordance with the Congressional 

direction, a report on this study is 

available for review and public 

comment at http://www.faa.gov/aircraft/ 

draft_docs/. 

Considerations for Comment 

The FAA Modernization and Reform 

Act section 410 does not direct FAA or 

FCC to change the existing policies and 

regulations that govern the use of cell 

phones in flight. However, this study 

provides factual information on the 

experience of airlines and the national 

aviation authorities that allow the use of 

cell phones in flight. Any future 

rulemaking related to airborne cell 

phone use will consider this study. 

The FAA is interested in obtaining 

comments on the report that documents 

the study on the use of cell phones on 

passenger aircraft. We are soliciting 

comments in the following general 

areas: 

• Information from aircraft operators 

that may not have been provided in the 

responses from the national aviation 

authorities; 

• Flight attendant and pilot 

experience with cell phone use on 

aircraft equipped with on-board cell 

phone base stations; 

• Passenger experience on aircraft 

equipped with on-board cell phone base 

stations. 

Request for Comments 

The FAA invites interested persons to 

submit written comments, data, or 

views. The agency also invites 

comments relating to the economic, 

environmental, energy, or federalism 

impacts that might result from changes 

in our current policy. The most helpful 

comments reference a specific area of 

concern, explain the reason for any 

recommended change, and include 

supporting data. Commenters should 

submit their comment(s) only once, in 

either written or electronic form, to 

ensure there is no duplication. 

The FAA will consider all comments 

it receives on or before the closing date 

for comments. The FAA will consider 

comments filed after the comment 

period has closed if it is possible to do 

so without incurring expense or delay. 

The FAA will summarize the comments 

received in a final revision of the cell 

phone study. 

Proprietary or Confidential Business 

Information: Proprietary or confidential 

business information must be sent or 

delivered directly to the person 

identified in the FOR FURTHER

INFORMATION CONTACT section of this 

document, and marked as proprietary or 

confidential. If submitting information 

on a disk or CD ROM, mark the outside 

of the disk or CD ROM, and identify 

electronically within the disk or CD 

ROM the specific information that is 

proprietary or confidential. 

Under 14 CFR 11.35(b), the FAA is 

aware of proprietary information filed 

with a comment and does not make it 

publically available. It is held in a 

separate file to which the public does 

not have access. If the FAA receives a 

request to examine or copy this 

information, it treats it as any other 

request under the Freedom of 

Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552). The 

FAA processes such a request under 

Department of Transportation 

procedures found in 49 CFR part 7. 

Issued in Washington, DC on August 30, 

2012. 

Susan J. M. Cabler, 

Asst. Manager, Aircraft Engineering Division, 

Aircraft Certification Service. 

[FR Doc. 2012–21826 Filed 9–4–12; 8:45 am] 

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