
Why airplanes might soon have just one pilot
CNN
Two-pilot planes have been the norm in commercial aviation for more than 30 years. As technology advances, airlines are looking at single-pilot operations as a way of saving money and addressing the pilot shortage -- but is it both feasible and safe?
(CNN) — If you boarded a passenger plane in 1950 and peeked into the cockpit, you would have seen five people in there (almost certainly men): two pilots, a radio operator, a navigator and a flight engineer.
Over the years, technical advances in radio communications, navigation systems and on-board monitoring equipment gradually removed the need for the last three, making it possible to safely fly a passenger plane with just two pilots. That has been the norm in commercial aviation for about 30 years.