Submitted by Gavica t3_zsxwux in explainlikeimfive
BrendanTFirefly t1_j1am8hq wrote
Reply to comment by TheLuteceSibling in ELI5: why do we still need human pilots on airplanes? by Gavica
This makes me wonder if remotely piloted passenger aircraft is something that is currently in the works.
rhomboidus t1_j1amszu wrote
Almost certainly not for liability reasons if nothing else.
manofredgables t1_j1axmdt wrote
It's kind of funny though. Programming an autopilot for an airplane isn't even a very complicated thing to do. I'm pretty sure that I could make a pretty good one all by myself if I had a few months.
Making one that can be guaranteed to not cause any deaths though? Not touching that with a ten foot pole!
Moskau50 t1_j1aoc70 wrote
Too risky, because you have the entire plane's functionality hinging on a single point of failure: the network connection.
ZizouGOAT10 t1_j1aorgy wrote
Could they implement an autopilot that can take over in that scenario and keep the plane running until the pilots come back
Moskau50 t1_j1aywvp wrote
The pilots are the backup for the autopilot, not the other way around. If the autopilot were to be good enough to replace the pilots during the outage, there would be no need for pilots.
ZizouGOAT10 t1_j1az4tn wrote
Oh I’m assuming the remote pilots are the main source and the autopilot would be to keep the plane afloat until the pilots come back but not good enough to fully take over or anything
Moskau50 t1_j1b3awp wrote
Which means that it’s not actually a backup, because if there’s some sort of electrical short that causes the connection to fail, that plane will crash.
Autopilot systems are routinely used today, so that pilots don’t have to have hands on the control for the entire flight. In any situation, or during takeoff/landing, the pilots take over for the autopilot. Outsourcing the pilots to a remote connection means that you’re outsourcing the backup, not the primary.
So you’re either swapping the autopilot to the role of backup (which is already a no-go in the current aircraft setup, so there’s no reason to assume they’d suddenly be okay with it) or you’re relying on the remote pilots to be as reliable as a pilot physically in the plane, which is foolish.
WeDriftEternal t1_j1an1ko wrote
ITs not new. Remotely piloted aircraft aren't a new concept, its just way improved recently with technology and affordability. Taking the pilot out of any craft has long been discussed. Commercial Airlines would LOVE to have pilots not have to be physically in the airplane, it would make ops much much more effective and cheaper-- until something goes wrong, and it will.
TehWildMan_ t1_j1an3rr wrote
In some countries, airlines and regulators are proposing the idea of single-pilot operation, at least in a normal cruise phase of flight. Even that is a regulatory hassle many aren't comfortable with
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