It’s only a matter of time before the iPad erases print entirely. The Federal Aviation Administration has granted early approval for the use of iPads in airplane cockpits – meaning before long, we could see the end entirely of paper maps and charts aboard planes. It would seem commercial airlines can’t wait to hop abourd the iPad bandwagon …plane… whatever, with none other than Delta already applying for approval to test the iPad (as well as other tablets) aboard its flights.

The iPad would be a significant change for airlines, as current-gen aviation computers can weigh almost twenty pounds. An iPad weighs less than two – and on a chunk of metal hurling through the sky, weight is everything.

According to aeronautical software company Jeppesen, air navigational iPad apps began to swing into gear because pilots themselves were requesting the use of iPads aboard their flights. Stay tuned to see whether or not this actually takes off (get it?).