The same way airliners have done it for many years … it’s called autoland. It is the rule rather than the exception, hand flying is left to the luddites, traditionalists, and a shrinking number of small general aviation aircraft. The latest systems can taxi to the gate.
it was in reply to SeaEagle who wants to know there is someone doing something up front…
Now Airbus has tested auto takeoff as well:
Well on the way to fully autonomous flight??
planes still land by hand you can tell when they swap over from FCS when close to the ground and take control as they are all over the place especially here in asia.
You dont notice on take off.
Whats telling the plane the accurate runway altitude for landing?
Does that mean that ALL US Pilots are proficient?
If so, is that because of their passport, or because of different pilot training?
What about foreign plots trained in US??
Radio altimeters, laser altimeters … it ain’t rocket science. If you are really interested look it up. This is a marine site.
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ils is the only system and its radio from the ground but not safe so when used all aircraft have to be well clear and no ground vehicles etc so speces aircraft way out, which was my point all aircraft do had landings.
Pilots test it when not busy but the tower has to approve its use.
Geez Bug, stop making everything some kind of nationalistic issue.
One of the reasons American pilots tend to have fewer problems with hand flying and visual approaches is because we were trained and got our first hundred or a thousand hours doing only that. Many of us got the time flying freight at night single pilot in all kinds of weather in aircraft with no autopilot and making visual or instrument approaches to minimums up to 8 times a day or night.
The typical European method is zero to hero whereby the newbie gets a seat in an airliner on a revenue flight when he or she has more time drinking coffee in the pilot lounge than flying.
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No comment is the strongest comment I can get away with.
they arent taught to fly anymore, thats why young pilots are crap and old ones are good these days.
New airlines…( asia) need lots of new pilots they dont want them to make decisions just follow procedure and press buttons hence ( most crashes are pilots crashing perfectly good planes these days)
at the YC bar the other day, one UPS 777 guy and one ( asian airline 350 capt) chatting away, hand flying came up, UPS guy says part of our requirements is to pass test hand flying at altitude ( which is very difficult), local guy says we are not even allowed to do try it in the sim…
I have 2 mates that are sim instructors, could fill this blog with stories you dont want to hear about pilots in asia.
The other issue these days seems to be the pilots are not interested in aviation just a job with better pension than bus driver.
So my buddy lets the FO land and taxi in ohare as its a bit daunting, daytime, they pull up onto taxi way and the tower says something like hold there let the 340 cross and follow the 9…my mate notices the guy looking everywhere then he realises he cant recognise any plane type except a 747…doh!
Mate notices FO a but nervous after the climb he starts chatting, so how many hours on type, 247 total flying time fo says, so airline put him in right seat with 247 total time in a 747.only in asia
Re Europe its depends on the airline, KLM only every had one mistake and they are the oldest in the world.
if the pilot doesnt have grey hair be afraid, be very afraid…
Yes, all US pilots are better than the rest because they are the best.
It is because American pilots are smarter and better looking.
Foreign pilots trained in the US will never measure up because they are not American.
Any other questions?
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They come here because the weather is better, the cost is lower, and the time to minimum proficiency is much less. All of that equates to way the F cheaper than in Europe or Asia. That is the reason some foreign airlines have contracts with American flight schools.
That does not mean the foreign student continues to fly privately or commercially in the US airspace system after reaching the absolute minimum level of licensing. When that student goes back to the airline that sponsored him he will be trained to the airline standard, for better or worse and much of what they learned in the States is either forgotten or not permitted.
Those foreign students who come here on their own dime do it for the reasons outlined above. If they apply for a flying job at home they are miles ahead since local training is either non existent or prohibitively expensive or military. A lot of those students get jobs with very small “bush” outits in 3rd world jungles where they either get very good at flying or die. The survivors bring great skills to their home airlines that the sponsored kids can only dream about.
You mentioned FOREIGN Pilots around the world NOT being proficient, so one can draw the conclusion that ALL US Pilots are.
Now you are saying that proficiency is because of experience, not because they are Americans.
Does that mean that ALL Pilots, regardless of where they come from, would be equally proficient as long as they have same/similar experience? I think so, in general terms.
The same applies in the Maritime sphere. Proficiency and competence are gained with experience, regardless of race, religion or nationality. (Although some do the same thing wrong for years and call it experience)
The anniversary of the incident came up in the last week and some may remember it. A British Airways 747 flow through volcanic ash on a flight from NZ to Singapore while passing over Indonesia at night. The presence of ash in the atmosphere had not been notified.
All four engines stopped and the 747 descended at a glide while those in the cockpit worked on getting the engines started and at quite a low altitude they were successful.
The cockpit windows had the appearance of having been sandblasted and there was a tiny slit in one corner that the captain peered through to land the plane on a small airfield, the engines were wrapped off.
That is why I want a guy up the front who has some skin in the game.
The Australian airline Quantas has the best safety record of any airline including any of the US airlines.
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Yes I remember this very well. I was doing a lot of flying (as passenger) at the time and did pay attention to news like that.
PS> Halim was the main airport for Jakarta at the time. Close to down town Jakarta.
It is still in use, but now for military and charter flights.