FAA chief vows quick action on gadgets, stall training

• Advisory panel issued report in September calling for expanded use of electronics on planes
• 16-day government shutdown delayed action on electronics%2C other FAA rules
• New rule on avoiding engine stalls also on the way

WASHINGTON — The head of the Federal Aviation Administration said Thursday he would move "very quickly" on whether to allow the use of personal electronics on planes below 10,000 feet.

FAA Administrator Michael Huerta said after a luncheon speech at the Aero Club that a new rule for pilot training to avoid stalls would also come "very quickly." He didn't name deadlines for gadgets or training.

An advisory panel gave Huerta a report in September recommending he allow the use of gadgets that aren't making calls or connecting to the Internet while planes are taking off and landing. Use of electronics below 10,000 feet is now prohibited.

"We know that this has a great deal of public interest, and we're going to respond as quickly as we can," Huerta said.

The 16-day government shutdown this month delayed both decisions, he said. The agency is reviewing the damage after temporarily halting 1,000 contracts and furloughing 12,000 workers — although not air-traffic controllers.

The agency has had a tumultuous year because federal spending cuts prompted a week of furloughs in April for a portion of air-traffic controllers, which delayed thousands of flights.

Congress agreed to shift funding from airport construction to FAA operations to end the furloughs and prevent the threatened closure of towers at small airports.

Controllers worked through the government shutdown, although work stalled on the agency's development of satellite-based navigation equipment called NextGen.

When Congress reopened the government through Jan. 15, lawmakers included an additional $100 million for FAA operations. Huerta said the agency still faces cuts similar to the $637 million it lost last year.

"Right now, Congress has provided us a framework where we don't anticipate needing to furlough between now and January, nor are we really looking at anything" such as closing towers at small airports, Huerta said. "It is so important — these negotiations that are going to take place in Congress between now and December in order to figure out what the fiscal course of the country is, going forward."

The FAA is developing a rule for more pilot training to avoid stalls after the fatal Colgan Air crash in February 2009. The rule was expected Oct. 21 but delayed by the shutdown.

"It's at the very top of our regulatory agenda," Huerta said. "It's a very high priority for me, and it's one that I want to get out very quickly."