Its here…Ehang Aviation

[trey kule]

Just got off the phone with a friend from China.

The CAAC has authorized Ehang Aviation ( hope I got that name correct). To operate pilotless aircraft commercially. Very limited right now, but they are not only pilotless but autonomous.

Not sure, but I think I originally joined AvCanada in 2004. When a few of us stated that technology would eventually make pilotless aircraft reality, we were “ piled on”. From great heights that it would never happen, because, you know, pilots never make errors and machines are unreliable.

It is coming in a huge way. I dont have them in front of me at the moment , and its 0200, but there have been several accident studies and the theory,, at the time, is planes could be made safer and more efficient by replacing the pilot.

I sometimes wonder where the nay sayers are now,, and what their new thoughts are on the reality.

( also, I miss Rockie….different reasons, but he was an aviation slinkie to me)

[Slick Goodlin]

They have an interesting little contraption, I guess the idea is to get up and over downtown congestion in a sort of flying Uber. Being electric (I think), having to carry a pilot would have cut the payload down so far as to make it not commercially viable.

The race has been on in the US for some time to develop the same thing. I suspect there have traditionally been more hurdles to overcome on this side of the world but maybe that will change.

[Colonel]

Freight-only is a logical place to start with pilotless. After some time with that, onto meat bags in the back.

PS. I miss Rockie like I miss a giant pimple on my ass. I suspect he took seven COVID jabs after the first 6 didn't work, and is somewhere arguing that it originated in a bat cave/wet market, and that the Hunter Biden laptop is Russian disinformation. Every Good Canadian™ should get another COVID jab with their morning coffee, every day.