Gulf Air crew flight bags now carry Apple iPads

355 Apple iPads have been purchased by the Kingdom of Bahrain’s Gulf Air, to be included in air crews flight bags, replacing the previous kit bags.

Gulf Air Acting CEO Maher Salman Al Musallam commented the decision as a “strategic relationship with VIVA Bahrain” and goes on to state that the company is ”pleased to extend this partnership to include the provision of iPad devices as part of Gulf Air’s Electronic Flight Bag project”.

Gulf Air is the latest air carrier looking into the Apple iPad as a replacement for heavy, traditional flight bags; a move that is both in the interest of the cabin crew, as much as it is cost effective in terms of aircraft fuel and printing costs.

The trend, started in 2011 by Delta Airlines, has proven very cost effective, so much so that

the success of such initiatives has not flown “below the radar” of the U.S. Airforce either, saving taxpayers an average of $750.000 in fuel and over $5.000.000 per year in printed documents, by replacing the old flight packs with iPad based EFBs.

Gulf Air Director Information Technology, Dr. Jassim Haji goes on the record saying that “This collaboration ensures we deliver the latest technology to our team and, as a result, to our passengers.”