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Drones. Why are these things so difficult to fly? WTFO?
- Thread starter mad dog
- Start date
I'm wondering if they might try to create some kind of intermediate qualification that sits between autonomous and piloted aircraft where the autonomous system keeps the vehicle within safe operating parameters and the operator directs where the aircraft goes within that managed bubble. That is becoming more and more of the reality in operating sUAS today, where the device OS places a lot of restrictions on where you can operate.
The regulators are definitely struggling to keep pace with industry when it comes to UAS and *way* behind when it comes to the "manned drone" autonomous aircraft sector. I can't really blame them for that; unmanned autonomy is advancing so fast even the rest of the industry has trouble keeping up. The drone package delivery model is one example; by the time a user has developed a business model using the tech, and regulators have signed off on actually fielding it, it's already 2-3 generations behind what *can* be done, and so much better and cheaper that the old business model is now impracticable. In tech pacing terms, it's not unlike the dot-com boom years. So I feel one of two things is going to happen in the next five-ish years (maybe both): either a complete paradigm shift in how UAS are developed, regulated, and employed, or some sort of high-profile mishap sets the whole thing back a decade, because no matter what the tech enables, the public and regulators simply won't go along with it.
In non-aviation examples: automation and computer assistance have made it technically feasible for years now for trains to operate safely with one engineer vice the two required by DOT regs and union contracts. But the latter factors are why they don't. It plays to the public like bureaucrats and big unions holding back progress and keeping costs high - until the first time a solo-operated train glitches and crashes into a school bus or some damn thing. We're seeing the same thing happening with self-driving cars.
The big thing I see with going from two operators to one is human factors: Two people will catch each others' mistakes and hold one another accountable, as well as just the simple QoL of having someone to talk to** during long journeys where very little may actually require direct operator action. Furthermore, there's the basic factor of having someone around to recognize when the operator isn't 100%, has a health issue, or otherwise needs human attention. Finally, it builds in a mechanism for continuously training and building experience on the job.
Having said that, going to pilotless aircraft may be a logical step at some point. For long hauls, that might even be safer than going to a single piloted aircraft, as you reduce variability within the system.
I'm a big fan of automation. However, I also feel we are being lean six sigma'd out of the human side of the equation by the efficiency police, and I don't like that part of things. Human considerations seem to be an afterthought, at best. I think there is a cogent argument to be made for the human element- treating people like people vs. meat servos- being a strong part of robust future solutions in transportation and other sectors where automation plays a big role.
**barring personality conflict, of course... We've all been there.
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@sevenhelmet Agreed with all of the above. One of the things I’ve been struggling with in the 10+ years I’ve been involved in UAS is the disconcertingly casual attitude the military at least (can’t speak to civilian industry operators) has toward human factors, training, proficiency, and ORM in UAS flight ops. “It’s just a robot, who cares if it crashes.” Well, you will, sir, once it crashes into some meatbags on the ground or in another aircraft.
Things seem to be changing somewhat, but I doubt anything will really change until/if/when someone with UAS tours winds up in a policy making position. The Class A rate when I was flying Fire Scouts was absurd, and nobody seemed to give a shit, despite Q-8s being neither small nor cheap.
Or the surprising results when you send one trolling for Libyan SAMs at 2000’ and below a cloud deck, for that matter.
Things seem to be changing somewhat, but I doubt anything will really change until/if/when someone with UAS tours winds up in a policy making position. The Class A rate when I was flying Fire Scouts was absurd, and nobody seemed to give a shit, despite Q-8s being neither small nor cheap.
Or the surprising results when you send one trolling for Libyan SAMs at 2000’ and below a cloud deck, for that matter.