American Airlines pilots will become the first commercial airline pilots to ditch print pilot’s manuals in exchange for iPads outfitted with flying manuals. The Federal Aviation Administration approved the airline’s request to do so earlier this week.

The Next Web has the details: “American’s pilots will be using the iPad, which is the only FAA-approved tablet as a replacement for paper-based reference manuals that weigh 35lbs. This will save AA an estimated $1.2M of fuel across all of its planes annually, based on current fuel prices.”

The move comes as the FAA is in the process of forming a government-industry group to study the use of personal electronic devices and determine  when these devices can be used safely during flight. Depending on the results of the study, flyers may be allowed to use iPads during takeoff and landing some time down the road.