The plan to have just one pilot in the cockpit for passenger flights was met with criticism and doubt after various airlines and regulators put their weight behind the proposal. According to Bloomberg, the move is expected to cut down on costs for airlines and also make life easier amid crew shortages. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency has also started discussions with various stakeholders on how airplane can be handled by just one pilot with the help of artificial intelligence and automation.
While the EASA has said that it can become a reality by 2027, concerns remain over how it will affect the safety of both the crew and passengers. Over 40 countries including Germany, the UK and New Zealand have already expressed concerns and have asked the aviation industry to ensure the plan’s viability.
In August this year, the pilots on a flight travelling from Khartoum to Addis Ababa apparently fell asleep and as a result, they missed their mark to land at the Addis Ababa Bole International Airport. In another much-publicised case in 2009, Air France Flight 447 saw both pilots facing technical difficulties at 35,000 feet and it ended up resulting in a horrific accident that ended up killing all 228 people on board.
A new survey also suggested that a majority of pilots working in Indian airline companies have been suffering from “daytime sleepiness” which is generally triggered by extreme fatigue. Among the 542 pilots who took part in the survey, 66 per cent said that they have dozed off during their shift hours.
As a result, the thought of just one pilot handling the cockpit has made a lot of people uneasy. However, when it comes to the EASA, the next move is to ensure complete automation in the sector.
“We are potentially removing the last piece of human redundancy from the flight deck,” Janet Northcote, EASA’s head of communications, wrote in an email to Bloomberg.
