How To Make Flying Safer

Recently, on a very long haul flight to Japan, I happened to overhear a Dad chatting to his young son about the future of flying.

"One day it will all be very different son." said the Dad confidently. "In the cockpit there will be just one man and a snarly dog."

"Really!" replied the boy, how's that?"

"Well the plane will be flown by remote control by somebody on the ground. The man will be in the cockpit just to keep an eye on things."

"And what about the snarly dog, Dad?" enquired the boy.

"Oh that's easy..." said the Dad, "....the dog will be trained to bite the man's f@cking hand if he dares to even touch any of these b@stad controls."

Funny, but almost true in as much as we are for sure heading towards pilotless aircraft. Indeed, we already have the technology. The only reason it hasn't been introduced is down to the flying public none acceptance of the idea. The mere thought of getting on an aircraft without a pilot is enough to bring just about everybody out in a cold sweat.

The simple fact of the matter is that we just don't trust the technology. However, when you think that seventy percent of all plane crashes are down to human error, it makes you think that maybe a plane without a pilot isn't such a bad idea after all. Airlines themselves love the idea due to a massive reduction in salaried pilots and the economic savings that that would bring.

You only have to look at how drones can be precisely flown in just about any direction, including the vertical plane, if you'll excuse the pun, with no trouble at all. I can well see the day when drones are scaled up to carry passengers and flying will more accessible than ever to the general populace. What 's more, it will be as safe as houses, even safer if the house has a big snarly dog or two.

Would I personally get on a pilotless plane? Absolutely I would, it's not machines and technology that scare me, it's the guy in charge of flying who has had a right old barney with his wife or a workmate just prior to takeoff. Or a pilot who had one too many alcoholic drinks the night before. Or a pilot who didn't get enough sleep because the neighbours' dog thought it heard burglars on the prowl.

Where I live in Japan and Spain we already have self driving trains and cars. And as far as I am aware there has not been a single driverless train crash causing hundreds of lives. As for self driving cars, so far there have only been a small handful of lives lost, and it is estimated that in the future 94 percent of fatal accidents will be eliminated due to the lack of human error.

Remote control flying? Bring it on. It really is only a matter of time. We already have self driving trains and cars in operation even as I write. The pilotless aeroplane will I feel be the very last frontier in transport autonomy and the sooner it comes the better for all concerned. Just think about all of the lives that could be saved simply by eliminating the most unreliable element in flying a plane, the human being with his hands on the controls.

Of course, it would be very difficult to eliminate maintenance crew and ATC people, but getting rid of human pilots would be a start to towards making the skies a much safer place for everybody.