Single - or no - Pilot Airliners

The pilot shortage has finally arrived. To attract and retain pilots, airlines are having to pay more for pilots with less experience. This will hasten the move, which many see as inevitable, to single pilot cockpits. And single pilot flightdecks require much the same technology as no-pilot flight decks

TO DEAL WITH THE SHORTAGE, the airlines are making profound changes to pilot employment contracts. In South Africa, SAA has increased the retirement age from 63 to 65. In the USA the much-protested minimum requirement of a 1500 hr ATPL to get into the right seat has quietly been dropped.

Also in South Africa, we are seeing massive recruitment drives to suck up South African pilots for the world’s airlines. Many are finding the attractions of no load-shedding, a safe environment for their families, and large sometimes tax-free, dollar-based salaries, very attractive.

But pilot recruitment strategies that poach from other airlines, or extend retirement age, or reduce entry requirements, are still not going to be enough to meet the shortfall caused by the loss of up to 40% of the pilots due to retirements during Covid and cut backs by the airlines.

At the same time there has been an exponential rise in Artificial Intelligence systems. And so there has been increasing noise about a move to single pilot cockpits.

The idea that technology has advanced far enough to make pilots redundant fascinates the general flying public, not to mention all the professional pilots who may one day lose their jobs to a computer.

Basic automation has been making the skilful parts of flying an airliner easy. Autoland has already been around for fifty years. It is reported that pilots spend on average just six minutes actually hand-flying the plane on each flight. And now satellite communication (think Starlink) will make it possible for an air traffic controller to step in and take control of an airliner if the only pilot onboard is incapacitated.