Pilotless aircraft. Look out Fed Ex wannabees.

[Flyer1015]

How will a computer detect a small animal on the runway, which calls for a go around? How will a computer sense an impending ground excursion with another airplane? There are some things you need human eyes for, so pilot-less passenger airplanes won't be happening for a LOOONG time. The general public wouldn't fly on a computer-flown-only airplane.

Besides, anyone who praises pilot-less passenger aircraft.... all I have to do is show them the video of that (Air France?) A320 that is automated and coming into land and runs straight into the trees. Supposedly, that landing was all computerized (even with pilots in the cockpit, but I don't think they could do much).

That shuts them up pretty well, and I win the argument.

 

[J32driver]

all I have to do is show them the video of that (Air France?) A320 that is automated and coming into land and runs straight into the trees. Supposedly, that landing was all computerized (even with pilots in the cockpit, but I don't think they could do much).

Air show flyby.... screwed up by the pilot. He got below a radar altitude and disabled the "Alpha Floor" protection. The same protection he was relying on to force the autothrottles into TOGA. When he purposely slowed into Alpha floor, and didn't get TOGA as a result, he was slow to respond. By that time, the airplane was in the trees.

I'm no fan of drone airplanes, but this one was pilot error because of a lack of systems knowledge.

 

[Soverytired]

I
Pilots make safety decisions based on their desire to see their kids again at the end of a trip. A drone operator on the ground just don't feel that in his gut.
.

True. But to play devils advocate . .. in a truly f-d up, we're on fire kinda moment, a trained crisis response team (ground based) with a real time data link to the aircraft might very well be able to assess things more calmly, and delegate different tasks among more people, than two chuckleheads fumbling in the airplane.

Weather is a tricker beast. Flying around +TSRA is a lot easier with a Mark 1 eyeball AND radar, for example.

We're not there yet. But I'd be very surprised if we're not there in 30 years.

IMHO.

 

[Soverytired]

Ummmm. How's a pilotless aircraft going to handle taxiing at ORD? Anyone?

Actually, I'd think setting up a pilotless taxi system would be fairly easy at a major airport at ORD. And tugs for the last 50 feet could work well.

The bigger problem will be the expense at all the smaller airports that don't want to spend billions on a system a couple of planes use a day.

 

[YourPilotFriend]

You guys take for granted how reliable humans are vs machine software. A great piece of software is reliable 98% of the time, while the other 2% is failure or error. A 2% failure rate would result in about 10 million deaths a year. You just can't program software to be anywhere near human reliability, unless they come up with something completely new, which I don't see happening in our lifetimes.

 

[MALSR]

Design it....at least 5 years (the miliary doesn't count: I'm talkin' passenger planes here).
Test it....at least 3 years
Prove it....at least 5 years
Submit it...at least 1 year
FAA test it...at least 3 years
Red tape it...at least 2 years
Sell it...at least 3 years
Implement it...at least 2 years
Get the public to trust it...who knows

No, not in our lifetimes. Also, consider that ATC radar can not do the job on WX avoidance. So it flies into a big storm, injures pax, no one in the cockpit to negotiate a deviation, or even ask for other altitudes for everyday turbulence. Pax get injured, lawsuits....I just don't see it any time soon.

If airbus makes it: add 10 more years

 

[dogtown]

would you rather have a computer or a 300 hr regional pilot fly you around?

Seriously, you're even bothering to ask that question? A pilot.

 

[Flyer1015]

I can imagine it now: the blue screen of death appears in the cockpit.

"Unable to find LAX... Abort, Retry, Fail? ___"




[Computer enters an infinite loop of "R" entries for Retry, with no luck]

 

[HA25]

Seriously, you're even bothering to ask that question? A pilot.

I guess his comments just went over your head... Sure the pilot, but he's "begging the question" if you know what that means.

 

[dogtown]

I guess his comments just went over your head... Sure the pilot, but he's "begging the question" if you know what that means.

Wow. You're kind of ass then arn't you?

 

[HA25]

Wow. You're kind of ass then arn't you?

So what, are you saying? 300 hour pilots are a good idea?

you've lost me man..

 

[dogtown]

Well I don't see where I said that; but yeah, is as much that they are the only way to get 10,000hr pilots they are a great idea. And while I Do Not think 300hr pilots should be flying at the airlines, the fact is there isn't much data to support my feelings.

 

[HA25]

I'm having a hard time with your grammar, but if you're saying that you need to be 300 hours before you get to 10K.. fine, just don't fly a commercial airplane until you have at least 1000 or more..that's what I'm saying.

 

[XJohXJ]

I don't think anyone is crazy about Sub 1000 or sub 500 hour pilots flying 50K-100K lbs pax jets around. However, I do not think it is proper, or just, to blame the pilots for taking those jobs.

A lot of FI posters talk about the free market system being the best solution to all problems. Well, the free market system states that you take the best job that you can at any given time. Talk about planning for the future, and waiting patiently for "better" jobs, when you have limited opportunities is just plain silly, especially when these low timers have bills which must be paid immediately.

Folks also seem to think that conditions are changing now for for entry level regional jobs. While that might be partially true, I don't think things will really change until there is significant change in QOL/pay for CFI's. I understand that there is a minority of CFI's who have livable jobs, most CFI jobs out there are truly horrendous.

Things will start to improve when CFI's are making over 35K with reasonable QOL, with opportunities to go directly to majors/LCC's with sufficient time (4-5K hours, for example). Until then, almost any regional job will be better than instructing, and the beatings will continue.

 

[acaTerry]

OK I see I will have to settle this. The planes will be pilotless, flown by 300-hour computer operators who paid for training and sleep on purple boards in their cubicles. My question is can you log it as PIC?

 

[Taildraggaah]

Design it....at least 5 years (the miliary doesn't count: I'm talkin' passenger planes here).
Test it....at least 3 years
Prove it....at least 5 years
Submit it...at least 1 year
FAA test it...at least 3 years
Red tape it...at least 2 years
Sell it...at least 3 years
Implement it...at least 2 years
Get the public to trust it...who knows

No, not in our lifetimes. Also, consider that ATC radar can not do the job on WX avoidance. So it flies into a big storm, injures pax, no one in the cockpit to negotiate a deviation, or even ask for other altitudes for everyday turbulence. Pax get injured, lawsuits....I just don't see it any time soon.

Good points, but consider that the technology is already here and that cargo doesn't need to be sold on it. GlobalHawks have weather avoidance capability that makes it fly around convective weather. But I agree passenger flights are a LOOOONNNGGG time away . just my .02...

 

[XJohXJ]

Actually, the planes will be flown by: IPODS!

Yes, all that frosty spiky hair gunk, mutated through exposure to solar radiation, has given the ipods artificial intelligence. Better buy up that apple stock now.

 

[AvroJockey]

OK I see I will have to settle this. The planes will be pilotless, flown by 300-hour computer operators who paid for training and sleep on purple boards in their cubicles. My question is can you log it as PIC?

LOL!!! :laugh:

Dude that was sweet!

 

[Soverytired]

You know, considering that this hasn't happened yet, this IS kind of a dumb thing to fight about.

Kinda like killing over religion - - ->

------> I.E. killing each other over who has the best invisible friend!

 

[HA25]

A lot of FI posters talk about the free market system being the best solution to all problems.

Well, in the intrest of political consistency; I've never been one of those guys.. The Tyrany of the freemarket with no checks is as evil as a Godless communist state.