Airbus 100% Autonomous Test Flight Success, No Pilot For Take-Off & Landing
Airbus conducted 500 flights that made use of the aircraft¡¯s onboard ¡®image recognition technology.
Aviation is one of the most fascinating fields of engineering. The idea of having an aircraft weighing hundreds of tonnes flying in the air like a bird, with hundreds of passengers and their hefty luggage, is nothing short of a dream come true.
Reuters
And many also know that aircrafts today are run by complicated auto-pilot systems that allow pilots to concentrate on other crucial things aboard the journey, or even take a break on long-haul flights. But still, takeoffs and landings are done manually, as human intervention there is imperative.
However, leading aircraft manufacturer Airbus today has announced an unbelievable feat. The Airbus A350-1000 aircraft was able to perform taxing, takeoff and landing in a fully autonomous way -- requiring no intervention from the pilots. How cool is that?
Airbus conducted 500 flights that made use of the aircraft¡¯s onboard ¡®image recognition technology. These aircraft are fitted with an array of cameras that normally assist pilots during taxing and avoiding blind spots. And the autonomous system used this to do the exact same thing.
In all 500 tests, pilots did nothing but sit in their seats as the aircraft flew on its own. The only thing they did was hover over the steering wheel or ¡®Yoke¡¯ to be ready in case things go south.
The first autonomous flight was conducted sometime in December, but it only took-off on its own (which also isn¡¯t a small feat as there are so many things that need to be in place and one tilt can make things worse), this time it did a whole flight autonomously.
Reuters
No pilots needed in future?
Of course not. Even today, we have aircraft that fly on autopilot, yet pilots are very active and their work involves connecting with different air-zones, making sure the trajectory they¡¯re on is perfect and being ready in case electronics on the aircraft go for a toss.
Even with autonomous flying, it¡¯ll only be designed to make the lives of the pilot easier, help them concentrate on other important things, and not replace them entirely.
