Have you ever flown or do you know any pilots? These systems are not fool-proofed and the last thing you would want is a connectivity issue when trying to take over remotely.
There are a number of high-profile situations that have happened in recent memory where the computers would have crashed the planes were it not for pilots onboard to override commands. The most recent that comes to mind is when a rudder was locked into the full side position. Overcoming that scenario is not something that was possible from a remote location because even the pilots onboard didn't know the extent of the problem. The only thing they could do was work to counter the forces... especially at landing.
There are any number of scenarios that come up during routine flights that require hands-on trained pilots to navigate and trouble-shoot.
I find your faith in technology disturbing...
I don’t think self-driving cars won’t have some kind of manual override. Or, I can’t see there being a market for those that don’t.
It’s true that autopilot in open skies is not the same as driving in road traffic. However, your odds of surviving a car crash are a couple whole lot better than a plane crash. Pretty sure the mortality rate of Tesla’s autopilot is a lot lower than human caused highway fatalities. I’ve only heard of one, maybe 2.
>>Have you ever flown or do you know any pilots? These systems are not fool-proofed and the last thing you would want is a connectivity issue when trying to take over remotely.<<
1) I have nearly 3 million Frequent Flyer Miles (over 3 million if I add smaller carriers)
2) It doesn’t undermine my statement. I said the pilot is a redundant failsafe mechanism.
If we wanted to, we could make vehicles where no one would ever die from a car crash. We have collectively decided it is too expensive and chosen different risk/reward point.
The same is true for pilots. We have chosen a particular risk/reward model that says we want to pay the expense of a pilot just in case.
But the pilot is not necessary for 99.9999% of all flights. You can argue the .0001 if you want — I won’t disagree, since that isn’t my point.