Airbus has reportedly outlined plans for a future of flights with no pilots on board.
A looming shortage of pilots and advances in automation are encouraging the European aircraft manufacturer to develop technology that eventually will remove human beings from the cabin.
The company’s chief technology officer Paul Eremenko was quoted by Bloomberg Television as saying: “Maybe we can reduce the crew needs for our future aircraft.
“We are pursuing single-pilot operation as a potential option and a lot of the technologies needed to make that happen have also put us on the path towards unpiloted operation.”
The push for pilot-free airliners is also under way at Boeing, which has announced plans for testing autonomous flight technology in small aircraft next year.
Mike Sinnett, its vice-president of product development, who will ride in the experimental aircraft along with monitoring pilots, has emphasised the need for caution over a cultural shift that faces resistance from both the public and aviators.
Although it is developing the technology, Boeing is not committed to making a fully automated airliner, Sinnett told Aviation Week magazine: “We’re not going there yet. We’re exploring.”
Aircraft manufacturers are relying on advances in artificial intelligence to match the decision-making powers of the humans who manage the variables that come with flying. At present, pilots intervene regularly to override the computers when they go astray.
The advance of autonomous flight will come gradually, with the development of small aerial vehicles that will be used like taxis as urban transport. Boeing, Airbus and smaller aircraft makers are building these drone-like vehicles, The Times reported.