jdebrey

I honestly wish CNN, Fox, MSNBC, etc would just hire someone from the aviation industry who has actual experience instead of someone who has absolutley no idea what they are talking about. My friend sent me this article saying "well look who will be out of a job in the next 10 years" when in reality it couldn't be farther from the truth. The general public has no idea about the logistics, regulations, and economical implications this would have. All they really know about the aviation industry is that they get on a plane that goes up into the sky and magically lands at they're destination.

sorry for going a little off topic,

Rant Over

flensr

What off the shelf technology are you referring to? Which company or supplier has this ready to go? Do you have ANY idea of the mishap rate for these "off the shelf" systems you are talking about, or any concept of how much it costs to scale those systems? Do you understand the expense behind lofting a couple hundred more satcom birds or putting up a couple million ground transceivers to handle the necessary high bandwidth datalinks? KU won't handle it, not enough frequencies available. So add in the cost of a new satcom spectrum, waveform, and of course standards...

The barriers to this are enormous. Not saying it won't happen eventually, but... Really? "Off the shelf"? No way, not even close, unless you're talking about an operation limited to a handful of flights per day flying people who don't mind dying on routes over people on the ground who also don't mind dying.

ShyGuy

Dised101

The fact is, the military is already doing it. R and D already has taken place. That it the biggest cost. Any costs you have mentioned will be weighed against savings. The industry will defer some of those costs to the government in the form of ATC reform. Management will always view labor as an expense and not an asset. And the flying public could care less. As long as they Save a dollar on a ticket....

NYGiantsFan

Ill be on the beach or sailing on my sailboat drinking a margarita by the time pilotless planes come around... so im not worried

wilco811

Not gonna happen in a long time. They can't even do automated cars and maybe they never will be able to. Machines plainly suck for the most part. My laptop still crashes and my phone freezes. Siri is practically useless. Trains aren't automated except for very short rides ( like between airport terminals) etc. All these new planes like the A350 for example are all created to be flown by 2 pilots. Even future designs are going to require 2 pilots. I remember seeing this same article (minus the pilot shortage part) like 7 or 10 years ago. This is just a fantasy that the rich elite have, kind of like transhumanism, where they think the brain is a computer and they can live forever by downloading their brain into a computer. Just a rich mans wet dream, they aren't as smart as they think they are or as smart as they tell us they are. Never gonna happen, keep flyin folks!

jdebrey

Sums things up perfectly. If you want a laugh check out this article.

The telegraph is telling people that they could fly on a pilotless commercial airliner within 10 years.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/business/...itude-36000ft/


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wilco811

Hey, this Telegraph article is pretty much identical to the OP's CNN article. Two authors, two different magazines but same content at the same time? Seems like these media outlets are all owned by the same people and following a script, trying to get a certain narrative across. Like I said, just a rich mans wet dream, not gonna happen! They can keep dreaming all they want but the human brain is far superior than any machine. These people behind these articles are complete psychopathic delusional nutjobs.

Half wing

Not going to happen for a long, long time. CEO of Boeing said pilotless planes not before 2060. Too many glitches when the feces hits the fan. How about we work on reliable wifi to Hawaii first.

HueyHerc

There will always be a pilot...the only difference is he or she may not be in the aircraft. Look at the USAF Global Hawk high altitude drone. Launch team in theater, mission control team in the US, recovery team. Data link hand off, crew swaps etc. You will still have requirements for training, currency, crew rest, crew day, etc etc. These pilots will want to be paid for their services just like the ones who actually go along for the ride. Add in all the techies for data links and satellite comm requirements and you are right back where you started.