Reading research and articles about the development of ChatGPT and the overall industry around artificial intelligence (AI), a natural question arises: if AI successfully handles tasks such as writing code, learning languages, and creating AI interfaces, can it soon replace a human in the process of piloting an aircraft?

It seems that entire industries are beginning to doubt their need and relevance, and recent professional copywriters are worried about whether they will have work. But should this worry the pilot? Most importantly, the pilot has been hand in hand with autopilot for decades, complementing and enhancing each other's work.

Let's try to understand and figure out how to improve our interaction with the autopilot and developments in the field of AI.

Despite significant achievements in development, there are a number of reasons why autopilot cannot replace a human pilot. Let's start by selecting the main reasons and then delve into the theory.

Civil airplane pilots may encounter many situations where they need to make quick and adequate decisions, for example:

It's hard to predict exactly when artificial intelligence will be able to replace a human pilot in the process of controlling an aircraft. This depends on many factors such as the level of technological development, progress in the development of artificial intelligence, changes in legislation, etc.

However, there are already automatic air transport management systems that can perform some of the pilot's functions. For example, automatic systems can control the altitude, speed, direction, etc. However, even in such cases, pilots are still on board to monitor the system's operation and make decisions in non-standard situations.

Thus, it can be said that artificial intelligence is already being used in aviation and further progress in this area can be expected in the coming years. However, it is not foreseen that artificial intelligence will completely replace a human pilot in the next few decades.

Pilots, like any other professionals, must continually develop their skills and competencies to remain relevant at work and improve their performance.

Here are some competencies that can be useful for pilots:

1. Technical skills: Pilots must have a deep understanding of the technical aspects of operating an aircraft, including electronics, mechanics, aerodynamics, etc. They need to be able to quickly respond to technical problems that may arise during flight.
2. Management skills: Pilots need to be able to effectively manage a team on board and work as a team. They need to have time management skills, decision-making, communication, etc.
3. Emergency skills: Pilots need to be prepared for emergencies and able to respond quickly and efficiently to them. They should undergo regular training and education to enhance their readiness for emergencies.
4. Communication skills: Pilots need to have good communication skills to effectively communicate with the crew, passengers, and controlling authorities.
5. Language skills: In modern aviation, international experience may be required, so knowledge of English is an important advantage for pilots.
6. Learnability: Pilots must be ready for continuous learning and development of their skills to keep up with the latest technological and professional trends.

In general, pilots need to be ready for continuous development of their skills and competencies to remain relevant at work and be ready for changes in the field of aviation.

Overall, it can be said that pilots are still necessary for flight safety, and autopilot is unlikely to replace them anytime soon. However, with technological progress and the improvement of artificial intelligence algorithms, perhaps in the future autopilots will be able to become more reliable and useful in managing air transport.

The autopilot today more successfully performs tasks related to aircraft control, such as maintaining set parameters and controlling the operation of the engines. In addition, artificial intelligence technologies can be used to improve safety systems and optimize flight processes.

In conclusion, we can say with full confidence that we have nothing to fear.

Name of article: AI against the civil pilot
Release date: 4/6/2023
Acrticle author: Georgii Kurbatskii