How long is the use of automated pilot on flights?

One of the questions that are asked repeatedly is: “Do pilots turn on the automated pilot and go to rest?” To answer that we first need to know what the automated pilot and apply automation in commercial flights today.

The automated pilot was invented about 75 years ago, to reduce the work burden on the pilots, and it became an integral part of the aviation management system that interacts with the database to control the plane.

On a model commercial trip, the automated pilot is used for approximately 90% of the flight time. To simplify the matter, we can consider the journey divided into 4 stages: take off, fly, approach, and land. Where the automated pilot is mainly used in the aviation stage.

Currently, the automated pilot is not used to take off because it requires quick decisions from the plane crew to cancel the boot in the event of emergency or obstacles on the runway. So, the passenger plane is handcrafted manually while taking off, and it usually lands manually if the vision at the arrival airport is good. But the automated pilot allows the airports to land when the weather is not appropriate, especially with low visibility.

The automated pilot can be operated early up to 5 seconds after taking off or when the plane reaches 100 feet above the ground level. As part of the requirements of the International Civil Aviation Organization, the automated pilot should be used at flying above 29,000 feet above sea level to control air traffic more accurately.

The British University of Cranfield analyzed a sample of a full year data from the Airbus A319 fleet, with a total of about 14,000 flights. This fleet in particular has often participated in short -term flights, with an average time of air, a little less than 72 minutes. It turned out that 95% of flights were in the period of manual flights less than 440 seconds (seven minutes), and nearly 80% of the flights were only four minutes. Note that this period includes the time after taking off as well as before landing.

Is this bad? Well, there is some controversy over whether the pilots are losing manual flight skills due to the spread of the cockpit automation. However, there is also an argument that increased automation reduces the burden of the pilot’s work, thus allowing pilots to monitor more effectively. Even with the operation of the automated pilot, the pilots will remain busy.