A pilot has a TSA agent and an iPad app to thank for making a safe landing.
Raymond Cody was flying a single-engine plane across western Colorado to Grand Junction Regional Airport on Tuesday morning when the instrumental panel in the cockpit malfunctioned and the navigation system stopped working. He quickly realized that he had no way of notifying airport officials.
Cook grabbed his cell phone and called the first number he had for the airport, which happened to be the Transportation Security Administration's customer service hotline. Thanks to the TSA agent and his iPad, the pilot was able to make a safe landing without the on-board tools, The Daily Sentinel reports.
"The airplane motor wasn't an issue of stopping, it was only the electronics in the airplane. So I had no radio, I had no navigation equipment," Cody told KREX-TV.
Cody called the TSA just after 8 a.m. and got in touch with Gene Manzanares, the TSA's master coordination center officer for Grand Junction. He explained the situation and then used an iPad app to track his flight path as he spoke with Manzanares. The TSA agent helped Cody coordinate the landing with the control tower at the airport.
After the alarming ordeal, Cody met with Manzanares in person to thank him for helping him coordinate the landing.
"Gene's my hero," Cody told KKCO NBC 11 News. "He was real calm, kept me calm, and I do appreciate it."
The Federal Aviation Administration started allowing pilots to use iPads in February 2011. Typically, pilots are supposed to carry paper charts and manuals with them, but the new technology makes it easier. The FAA ran a test period for iPads and then officially allowed authorized operators to use tablets instead of paper charts.
American Airline pilots were the latest to get permission to use the iPads instead of the paper maps and charts. Since the iPads are lighter than the manual bags, it also saves airlines money on fuel.
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