WASHINGTON, March 28 (Reuters) - The Federal Aviation

Administration said Friday it was making it easier for airplane

owners to keep information private like their name and address

after Congress approved legislation over privacy concerns.

The FAA said that starting on Friday, private aircraft

owners and operators can electronically request that the agency

withhold their aircraft registration information from public

view. Social media accounts have used FAA registry information

and Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast data to track

private planes used by celebrities like Tesla CEO Elon

Musk and singer Taylor Swift.

Some websites or social media bots track numerous planes

used by well-known politicians and entertainers including Mark

Zuckerberg, Bill Gates, Michael Bloomberg, Harrison Ford, Kim

Kardashian and Oprah Winfrey. Some sites seek to highlight the

carbon emissions footprint of celebrities who regularly travel

by private plane.

In February 2024, media outlets reported a lawyer for Swift

sent a cease and desist letter to a college student that tracked

Swift's jet movements and posted regular social media updates.

Twitter -- now known as X -- suspended the creator of an

account tracking Musk's private jet in real-time soon after Musk

bought Twitter.

The FAA said it will seek comment, including whether

removing the information would affect the ability of

stakeholders to perform necessary functions, such as

maintenance, safety checks, and regulatory compliance.

The agency said it is also evaluating whether to default to

withholding the personally identifiable information of private

aircraft owners and operators from the public aircraft registry

and provide a way for owners to download their data if needed.