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It's 2019, the Year Blade Runner Takes Place: Where Are the Flying Cars?

posted by Fnord666 on Wednesday January 02 2019, @03:53PM   Printer-friendly
from the and-gyro-pistols dept.

upstart writes:

Submitted via IRC for Bytram

It's 2019, the year Blade Runner takes place: I can has flying cars?

Welcome to 2019, the year in which Ridley Scott's 1982 sci-fi film masterpiece Blade Runner is set. And as predicted in this loose adaptation of a 1968 Philip K. Dick story, we have flying cars.

The reason you don't have a flying car was explained by author William Gibson, who famously observed, more or less, "The future is already here – it's just not evenly distributed."

If you're Sebastian Thrun, you've already flown in Kitty Hawk's Flyer, which is more flying boat than flying car. If you're not, chances are you will have to wait a bit longer to live your sci-fi noir transport fantasy.

Topics include flying cars, artificial pets, voice driven photo enhancement, the Voight-Kampff machine, ad-festooned airships, space colonies, artificial organs and replicants.

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  • (Score: 3, Informative) by Freeman on Wednesday January 02 2019, @08:08PM (2 children)

    by Freeman (732) on Wednesday January 02 2019, @08:08PM (#781147) Journal

    The real "autopilot" isn't much better.
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_airline_flights_that_required_gliding [wikipedia.org]
    "14 August 2005
    Helios Airways Flight 522
    Boeing 737-31S
    Grammatiko, Greece

    Flight crew incapacitation due to wrong setup of pressurization system

    After takeoff from Larnaca, Cyprus, the flight crew continued ascent despite a cabin pressurization warning, and all on board, save for one flight attendant who attempted to control the aircraft, were eventually incapacitated by lack of oxygen. The auto pilot flew the aircraft to Athens, Greece and entered a holding pattern until both engines flamed out due to fuel exhaustion. Following this, the aircraft descended in a gliding spiral until it struck a hill in Grammatiko, killing all on board. "

    --
    Joshua 1:9 "Be strong and of a good courage; be not afraid, neither be thou dismayed: for the Lord thy God is with thee"
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  • (Score: 3, Interesting) by takyon on Thursday January 03 2019, @02:21AM (1 child)

    by takyon (881) <takyonNO@SPAMsoylentnews.org> on Thursday January 03 2019, @02:21AM (#781333) Journal

    An interesting example you've given. While autopilot certainly did not save the day (it only did what it was designed to do), several human errors happened first:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Helios_Airways_Flight_522 [wikipedia.org]

    The inspection was carried out by a ground engineer who then performed a pressurization leak check. In order to carry out this check without requiring the aircraft's engines, the pressurisation system was set to "manual". However, the engineer failed to reset it to "auto" on completion of the test.

    After the aircraft was returned into service, the flight crew overlooked the pressurisation system state on three separate occasions: during the pre-flight procedure, the after-start check, and the after take-off check. During these checks, no one in the flight crew noticed the incorrect setting. The aircraft took off at 9:07 with the pressurisation system still set to "manual", and the aft outflow valve partially open.

    As the aircraft climbed, the pressure inside the cabin gradually decreased. As it passed through an altitude of 12,040 feet (3,670 m), the cabin altitude warning horn sounded. The warning should have prompted the crew to stop climbing, but it was misidentified by the crew as a take-off configuration warning, which signals that the aircraft is not ready for take-off, and can only sound on the ground.

    It seems that the lesson to be learned is that more automation is needed, not less.

    --
    [SIG] 10/28/2017: Soylent Upgrade v14 [soylentnews.org]

    • (Score: 3, Insightful) by JoeMerchant on Thursday January 03 2019, @03:19AM

      by JoeMerchant (3937) on Thursday January 03 2019, @03:19AM (#781357)

      If autopilots were more trusted, they are already capable of landing at a destination - not so great at conversing with ATC, but if you've only got one full autopilot plane in the sky at a time the human pilots can give it a wide berth while it gets the passengers back on the ground safely.

      --
      🌻🌻 [google.com]