Passengers will still be prohibited from browsing the web and checking email once the plane’s doors have been closed and until its Wi-Fi network has been turned on, usually above 10,000 feet.

The administrator of the F.A.A., Michael P. Huerta, said he expected that, with rare exceptions, airlines would allow the use of tablets, MP3 players and smartphones in “airplane mode,” with their cell network connections turned off. The airlines will have to conduct tests on their equipment and submit the results to the F.A.A. for approval, he said at a news conference at Ronald Reagan National Airport, outside Washington.

Soon after Mr. Huerta spoke, Delta Air Lines and JetBlue announced that they had submitted plans for passengers to use electronics in flight. JetBlue also planned to introduce a high-capacity Wi-Fi service by the end of the year that may work at lower altitudes, said a spokeswoman, Jennifer Dervin.

The rule banning use of personal electronic devices during some parts of the flight had become an increasing source of frustration for passengers who saw it as outdated in a technology-dependent age, a point that Mr. Huerta acknowledged.

Jodi Fleisig, who lives in Atlanta with her husband and two boys, ages 11 and 9, welcomed the change. “It’s great when you have kids, because you can get them settled in and settled down, and it makes a huge difference in the quality of the flight,” she said. “They can play games on their iPads, or they can read or watch a movie.”