Does Your EFB Backup Plan Pass the Test?
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How to keep flying when your iPad quits
You’re cruising along at 6,500 feet, glancing down at your iPad to review the weather ahead. Then, suddenly—it goes dark. Maybe it overheated, maybe the battery died, or maybe the app just froze. Whatever the cause, your trusty iPad electronic flight bag (EFB) is now an expensive paperweight.
Now what?
Your trusty iPad electronic flight bag (EFB) is now an expensive paperweight.
It’s a scenario every modern pilot should plan for, yet many don’t—assuming the iPad will “just work.” But like any critical piece of flight gear, your EFB should be backed up with a plan that keeps you flying safely when things go sideways. Let’s take a look at what a solid EFB backup strategy looks like, and how to test it before you actually need it.
Common Failure Points
First, it’s important to understand the weak spots. Here are the most common ways EFBs let pilots down:
- Battery failure – You forgot to charge it, your charging cable fails mid-flight, or you forgot your cables.
- Overheating – Sunlight beating can send your iPad into thermal shutdown in minutes.
- Software issues – App crashes, slow performance, or overlooked data downloads.
- Connectivity loss – You lose GPS signal or ADS-B weather when you need it most.
- Human error – Maybe you accidentally left the iPad in your car, or didn’t download the right charts before takeoff.
Any one of these can leave you without access to critical information. So what’s the plan?
The Rule of Two: Power, Device, Charts
A good backup plan starts with a simple rule: two of everything.
- Two Power Sources—Power failures are the easiest to avoid. Make sure you have:
- A high-capacity battery pack (10,000 mAh or more)—consider this 10,000mAh option which is about the size of an iPhone, but backs some serious power.
- Charging cables (and a spare in your flight bag)—consider the smart charging pack which comes with a battery, cables and a case.
- A panel USB power port or at least a reliable cigarette lighter adapter. Bonus tip: plug in before your iPad hits 20%—some older batteries can’t charge fast enough to keep up under load. Consider the Flight Gear Dual USB Quick Charger.
The Small Flight Gear Backup Battery is about the size of an iPhone.
- Two Devices—Your iPhone can be a surprisingly capable backup EFB:
- Load the same app (ForeFlight, Garmin Pilot, etc.)
- Download charts and data ahead of time
- Learn how to navigate the app’s compact layout
Some pilots also fly with a second iPad, especially for IFR or cross-country flying.
- Two Sets of Charts—Paper may be old-school, but it still works.
- Keep a folded sectional or terminal area chart in your kneeboard
- Store key approach charts or airport diagrams in ForeFlight Documents or Apple Books
- If nothing else, snap photos of key procedures on your phone before you take off
Put It to the Test
The best way to build confidence in your backup plan is to practice with it. Try one of these low-stakes “failures”:
- Fly local using only your phone for navigation
- Turn off your iPad mid-flight and pull out your paper chart
- Ask your CFI (or safety pilot) to simulate an EFB failure during a training flight
- Fly an approach using panel avionics and your backup chart—no iPad allowed
It’s a great way to uncover weak spots and boost your real-world situational awareness.
Flying with your backup device will ensure you’re ready.
Pro Tips to Avoid Trouble in the First Place
- Turn off auto-lock in your iPad settings so it doesn’t sleep mid-flight
- Lower screen brightness and close background apps to save battery and reduce heat
- Secure your iPad in a mount with good airflow—so you’re not trapping heat
- Use a screen protector that reflects heat and reduces glare (like the Scooch Heat Block)
Your iPad is an incredible tool, but it’s still just that—a tool. Like any avionics system, it’s only as good as your backup when it fails. With a little forethought and a few smart habits, you’ll be ready to keep flying confidently even if your EFB calls it quits.
Because when the screen goes black, your training and your planning take over.
Are you ready to test your knowledge of an EFB backup plan?
This is a good test to make people think about an iPad failure. However, I would disagree with one answer. For the question about the best backup device, my initial thought was to go for the smartphone option. However, in the past I have been caught out by the failure of the navigation App. When contacted after the flight, the provider acknowledged the problem, which it relatively quickly corrected. Nevertheless, using a smart phone with the same App still means that you potentially have a single point of failure affecting both your primary and secondary options. Similarly, if your smartphone does not have a GPS chip and you are using an external GPS device for both iPad and iPhone, you again have a potential single point of failure. Personally, I always take my iPhone with the same App and route loaded AND a paper chart marked up with my route. The paper chart backup takes bt minutes to prepare using the PLOG produced by the iPad App.
Quizzes are very good , some tings you know and some are simply overlooked.
We have become addicted to precision. If you are on a 250 mile flight, is it important to know EXACTLY where you are while still a hundred miles out? Overheating will cure itself in a few minutes if you turn off the IPad and get it away from sunlight (although that can be difficult in an Legend Cub with skylights, don’t ask me how I know). GPS has just begun to be common in aircraft this century. Before that, we mostly navigated by pilotage and dead reckoning (even IFR) not worrying about exactness until the last half hour or so.
I have found that my iPad mini, sitting one the co-pilot’s seat will be indirect sunlight and will overheat. I great iPad Cooling Case is a great accessory to have, especially during the summer months. I have use the kneeboarding option for my cooling case. Works really well. Great article and fun knowledge test.
PLEASE stop showing pictures of devices mounted to the windows as if this is a perfectly safe and reasonable thing to do. If you have ever been involved in a near-mid-air-collision, you would understand just how critical is every square inch of outward visibility and quit blocking such huge sections of sky with your stupid iPad.
Have a completely separate nav option, eg ILS, Round dials etc. Frequently flying near military installations (eg Ft Hood). GPS suddenly shuts down and IPAD screens reads “GPS unavailable” use other source.Yes, has happened, at night, near KTPL. This article misses (double back up with a third totally different option. Other hint… Some cig lighter plugs generate awful RFI. Sportys plugs seem to be free of that.
I am not dependent on my iPhone or iPad as my EFIS has all I really need after I have downloaded the flight plan to it. And if I really had to, I could plan on the EFIS too. With ADS-B In it already has the weather too. My issue could be if the Army shuts down GPS when I am near one of their facilities. However, I have been through an area that was under a test and my GPS appeared to work normally.
I use the X-Naut (x-naut.com) iPad Mini cooler on a yoke mount. I’ve flown 3 hrs in direct sunlight on my iPad Mini , it never overheated the entire flight. I use 2 supplementals: iPad Mini with ForeFlight on a Sentry Plus ADS-B receiver and a Garmin 760 Aera on a GDL-51 ADS-B receiver. The Garmin 760 Aera simultaneously receives GPS, GLONASS, and BEIDOU GNSS signals, so if U.S. GPS ever fails or is interfered or jammed, the GLONASS and BEIDOU keep updating my moving map.