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US Air Force Buys iPads To Replace Flight Bags
redletterdave writes "Following the precedent set by commercial airliners, the U.S. Air Force plans to buy up to 18,000 iPads for its Air Mobility Command (AMC), replacing heavy flight bags with light and efficient Apple iPad 2s for the crews that fly cargo aircraft. The devices will reportedly be used by the crews on the C-5 Galaxy and C-17 Globemaster aircraft. There are several benefits to using electronic flight bags instead of physical versions. For one, the iPad can instantly update charts electronically, while the AMC would require flying charts get reprinted every 28 days to stay up-to-date. By cutting publication printing and distribution costs, and exchanging 70 pounds of paper for a 1.3-pound iPad, the Air Force can save some serious cash, including more than $1.2 million worth of fuel per year."
But printed charts and manuals don't have an 8-10 hour battery time ...
You're missing the point, which is to plug Apple.
Have you actually gone through the military procurement system? They probably ordered these when the iPad (1) was announced.
I remember reading an article a while back by a retired USAF pilot where he wrote about the time spent making sure that all the manuals and other paperwork were up to date and the trouble he could get into if it wasn't when someone inspected the aircraft. So I'm guessing that could save more than $1.2 million dollars of aircrew time.
I have to say, it reminds me of the comment an ex-Signals guy doing his amateur radio licence at the local club made, along the lines of "a map with a bullethole in it is a map that's still mostly accurate, but a laptop with a bullethole in it is really just too big to be a useful paperweight"
In particular, any computer needs to be built in the west, with chips from the west, to be trusted.
I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
exactly. The west is destroying itself by trusting goods coming from China. Instead, the west's military should require that all electronic be secured by west manufacturing.
I prefer the "u" in honour as it seems to be missing these days.
Really? Slashdot is going to argue over whether the military can figure out how to charge an iPad on a C-17? Really?
Yeah right, because in all these utility aircraft we operate every day, over thousands of flights, it has never occurred to anyone that someone might need DC power for something. Besides which, these things are largely for flight charts, rest calculators, etc. It's not like they're moving all their avionics to an ipad.
But it's good thing we've got the slashdot crowd around to point out these devastating flaws.