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from the queue-the-'Airplane!'-references-in-3,2,1 dept.
Pilotless commercial airliners are about to be tested, but potential passengers are wary:
How comfortable would you feel getting on a pilotless plane? That is the question millions of people may have to ask themselves in the future if they want to jet off on holiday around the world.
As we move closer to a world of driverless cars, which have already been on the road in some US cities and have also been tested in London, remotely controlled planes may be the next automated mode of transport. Plane manufacturer Boeing plans to test them in 2018.
A survey by financial services firm UBS suggests that pilotless aircraft not be too popular, however, with 54% of the 8,000 people questioned saying they would be unlikely to take a pilotless flight. The older age groups were the most resistant with more than half of people aged 45 and above shunning the idea.
Only 17% of those questioned said they would board such a plane, with more young people willing to give them a try and the 25 to 34 age group the most likely to step on board.
[...] Steve Landells, the British Airline Pilots Association's (Balpa) flight safety specialist, said: "We have concerns that in the excitement of this futuristic idea, some may be forgetting the reality of pilotless air travel. Automation in the cockpit is not a new thing - it already supports operations. However, every single day pilots have to intervene when the automatics don't do what they're supposed to. Computers can fail, and often do, and someone is still going to be needed to work that computer."
Fnord666: So how about it soylentils? Would you fly on a pilotless plane?
(Score: 2) by Aiwendil on Wednesday August 09 2017, @08:46PM (2 children)
Well, ok - if I could skip that travelling, security, and co-passanger parts..
But seriously - I trust the autopilot more than I trust a human pilot, and this holds even stronger in more modern airplanes.
I worry more about the absence of engineers in the cabin (it's either that or hefty redudancy - a single human is cheaper when it comes to weight)
(Score: 2) by Magic Oddball on Thursday August 10 2017, @08:56AM (1 child)
You should really read the article that an AC posted above you:
http://www.askthepilot.com/questionanswers/automation-myths/ [askthepilot.com]
Basically, the impression we've all picked up from the media is horribly wrong — to quote the author:
(Score: 2) by Aiwendil on Thursday August 10 2017, @09:11PM
*reads the linked text*
I still trust the autopilot more than I trust a human pilot.
I wouldn't be surprised if the autopilot will haved racked up fewer kills than humans by the time it gets vetted to the point of replacing humans.
And yes, I am well aware of its limitations, and that it in most cases (even when limiting to the last three decades worth of planes) are more likely to kill you - but I still would trust the autopilot more than a human pilot. Quite frankly I _want_ fully automated passenger jets to kill a few hundred people a few times. Mainly since this will give the feedback needed to weed out the cornercases that is the reason why we don't use it. (Akin to how pretty much every critical part on modern aeroplanes has been vetted).
But the fully automated system will at least tell you _why_ it crashed.