Are you representing yourself as a federal employee when you're not? THis sounds like the dumbest plan ever, especially with cheapo printed out business cards.

Do you know who I'm pretending to be?

I'm still unsure what all the fuss is about. I'm pretty sure you received a preflight briefing where you were informed that, per FAA regulations, you'd have to follow the instructions of uniformed crew members. It sounds to me like you received an instruction from a uniformed crew member.

Fro the FAA themselves

More importantly:
Nothing about weight here, it's the shape and size when unfolded (and not just the weight).

If you're still too important to put away your laptop, please start flying private.

(All from: https://www.faa.gov/about/initiatives/ped/faq/ )

Are you allowed to keep a laptop out / open during taxi / takeoff / landing, even on a private plane, say, NetJets or DPJ?!?

Yes, but you're not going to impede others or cause injury when it goes flying.

Your laptop doesn't fit the "should" criteria as it is more than 2 pounds.

Get a lighter laptop. Given you are Mr. Important Business Boy, I'm sure you can afford it.

Only if you're alone. Isn't there usually a FA on board, and your fellow business colleagues, perhaps?

Are you saying that you are the FA who didn't know what your were doing on the flight and started this thread?

Or maybe just the one FA taking her job very seriously and not taking chances when it comes to passenger safety. Wouldn't you feel guilty if there was some sort of accident on taxi and your beloved 2.00000001 lb laptop flew from your traytable and knocked some poor bloke in the head? Even if you can't consider how there is a small chance of it hurting others, there is a slightly larger chance you could damage the laptop itself and lose super sensitive business secrets?

Obviously it's not fun to be in the wrong, but it takes a lot of courage to just say "Meh, I might not agree with the interpretation of the rules, but I should respect authority and just suck it up"


P.S. I think I have the same laptop as you and it fits inside the seat pocket fine for me (even in bulkhead). And "should" doesn't seem so open to interpretation to me here.

right, but the FA who took view that I couldn't use it also said I could not store it in front of me.... - she was incompetent plain and simple. I have since flown 6 times using my laptop without issue.

Well, you really can't store it in your seatback pocket... What if the other six times you haven't had an issue were because no one noticed, or they didn't care for the confrontation you seem to enjoy? "There wasn't a problem last time" is the most common excuse there is, and it's hard to deal with.

If it's too big to be out during takeoff and landing, it's too big for the seat pocket. She was consistent.

THIS x 100000!

"But officer, I was speeding yesterday and nobody pulled me over! You're just not being fair! I was only doing 0,03 miles over the speed limit anyway and I'm so important!" :rolleyes: