West Atlantic leaves paper behind for electronic ‘Toughpad’

Swedish airline West Atlantic is aiming to cut down on physical paperwork carried on flights by digitizing with the introduction of Panasonic’s Toughpad FZ-G1 on its flights, according to a statement from Panasonic System Communications Company Europe.

Replacing physical paperwork with digital operations is environmentally friendly and saves time for the carrier’s flight crews, but the physical demands of moving airfreight can strain a typical – and breakable – tablet. West Atlantic’s operations manager, Magnus Klasson, said one key requirement was to find a tablet “that could withstand a blow, as conditions can get rough.”

Panasonic’s touchpads are designed to withstand rough usage and varied weather conditions, and are approved for Electronic Flight Bag (EFB) use in the aviation industry, according to the press release. EFBs replace paper-based materials usually included in the pilot’s carry-on bag, including operating manuals for the aircraft and flight-crew, as well as charts for navigation. EFBs can also host software designed to automate functions usually performed manually.

West Atlantic will include two of the touchpads per aircraft, according to the announcement, with the goal of reducing physical manuals and security papers onboard its aircraft.

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