Benefits to UAVs in military use:

Reduced Weight - Pilot, bangseat, Oxygen, Survival gear, Instruments and Controls
Reduced Drag - Narrower cross-section
Low Observability - Narrower cross-section (again)
Increased Loiter time - easy shift change back at the trailer while waiting for UBL to poke his head out of the cave
Maneuverability - Flight envelope increased to above 7-9 Gs
PR - No fatalities, no POWs paraded around Hanoi or the Mog on CNN each night
Cost - Half million+ training investment per pilot not at risk of being shot down.

Cross section, maneuverability, loiter time? I don't see these factors having the same impact on the airline business.

Would the companies dump the pilots if they could save a buck? No.

But if another airline did it first? In a heartbeat.

By the way, the civilian tech flying the UAV is probably getting paid a lot more than the USAF 1LT or Capt he's replacing.