Are you ready to get on a pilotless plane?

• Autores: Paul Marks
• Localización: New scientist, ISSN 0262-4079, Nº. 2981, 2014, págs. 30-33
• Idioma: inglés
• Texto completo no disponible (Saber más ...)
• Resumen

  • Along with improved safety, pilotless passenger planes could offer dramatic cost savings for airlines and passengers alike. At the heart of this revolution lies a simple fact: computers now do so much on planes that airline pilots rarely have cause to take the controls. Autoflight computers can take over when the plane is just 30 meters off the ground, maintaining whatever speed, heading and height the crew tap into the flight management system. And the computer has long been able to home in on a runway radio beacon and land the aircraft automatically. Here, Marks examines why automation introduces fresh challenges for pilots.