The US Department of Transportation plans to issue an official ban this spring on the use of smokeless electronic cigarettes on airplanes, reports the Associated Press.

In a letter to Senator Frank Lautenberg of New Jersey, Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood said the department has been informing airlines and the public that it interprets smoking regulations to include e-cigarettes.
Lautenberg, who wrote the 1987 law that banned smoking on airplanes, had asked transportation officials to clarify the rule. Many airlines already have begun informing passengers that the devices are not allowed on flights, but Lautenberg said there had been confusion over their use and wanted to make sure officials were solidly opposed to opening the door to e-smoking on planes.
"We still don't know the health effects of e-cigarettes, and we don't want to turn airline passengers into laboratory mice," Lautenberg told the Associated Press. (pi)