The US Federal Aviation Administration has released for comment 14 airworthiness directives (AD) affecting in-flight entertainment (IFE) and telephone systems which could result in IFE systems being de-activated, removed or modified on at least 74 US-registered aircraft.
The FAA stresses that the ADs are unrelated to the crash of the Swissair Boeing MD-11 off Nova Scotia, Canada, in September 1998, although the body did embark on a detailed study of IFE systems after the crash.
The Interactive Flight Technologies In-Flight Entertainment Network (IFEN) system installed on the Swissair MD-11 was subject to investigation due to heat damage found on IFE wiring recovered from the crash. Although the IFEN has never been identified as the cause of the crash, installation problems involving that specific system prompted a wider FAA review of IFE systems.
The ADs, which are open to comment until 16 April, will allow flight crews to switch off the IFE/telephone systems, which can currently remain powered. They affect Boeing 737-300s and -700s, 747-100s, -200s, -400s and -SPs, 757-200s, 767-200s, -300s and -300ERs, McDonnell Douglas DC-9-51s, DC-10-30s and MD-83s, and Airbus A340-200s. The main airlines affected are American Airlines, Continental Airlines and Hawaiian Airlines, with modifications to cost up to $170,533 per aircraft. Operators will have 18 months from the date of the ruling to comply.
The FAA's IFE investigation revealed that some entertainment systems cannot be turned off without removing the power from other required systems; some systems can only be deactivated by pulling circuit breakers; and in some cases procedures for deactivating the entertainment system are not available to flight crew. The agency is developing four similar IFE ADs affecting different aircraft.
Source: Flight International
