This Summer
This summer Tesla Motors is selling a model that holds the ability to be the first driver less car. All it needs is a software update to provide the capacity.
Modern regional airline pilots do not commonly have a broad experience base to draw upon. In the past it took thousands of hours of crop dusting, night cargo, and part 135 jobs before one reached an airline. In place of experience and ability pilots are checklist and flow chart driven procedure regurgitating automatons that are largely powered by rote memorization. In effect a heavily technology supported organic computer.
Commonly the weak link in the system is the organic matter that lies between the flight computer and controls. In a short time the public will become comfortable with self driving cars. The next thing to go will be the effective input of a pilot in air travel, replaced by artificial intelligence and ground control. Their purpose will be to serve as a last line of defense should all else fail. As with the cop who goes a career never having to draw his gun so the pilot could go their entire career never actually hand flying a plane.
In cruse they can put on an apron and help the cabin crew serve the passengers. It is only a matter of time.
Skyhigh