I stolidly support the autopilot feature on modern aircraft. The only human pilot should be napping in the cockpit to conserve his mental alertness in case he's ever needed for something.
Fun party game: Take bets on how serious I'm being and fight over it!
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
I knew that allowing pilots to lock themselves into the cockpit was a mistake...imagine the Black Box recording if the plane went down. We'd be bailing out the airline industry after all the wrongful death lawsuits were done.
There's zero coverage of this in the states. Un-fucking-believable.
quote:After February's incident, Mr Oltman was diagnosed with "severe obstructive sleep apnea" which causes people to stop breathing repeatedly in their sleep, preventing a restful night.
Then he should be on permanant disability and not fucking flying a plane.
More proof the FAA are fucktards.
Posted by WizArtist II (Member # 1425) on :
Had it been from say, Dallas to Honolulu that would have been one thing.....but a 45 minute flight?
Jason: I've got moderate obstructive sleep apnea. Are you telling me I can get money from the government for that?
Posted by MinutiaeMan (Member # 444) on :
Daniel: I wouldn't go that far. But I think what Jason was saying is that the asshole shouldn't be operating major machinery with a hundred people's lives in the balance.
Posted by Kosh (Member # 167) on :
Not to mention those of us on the ground.
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
Yeah, deathtoll from ground-based casualties eclipses that of the plane's passengers. I can see an unintentional sleep apnea fuckwead version of 9/11 as a plane hits some hawaiian luxury hotel on the beach. Then the Bush administration would invade....er..Iran. Possibly the Canary Islands.
Daniel, I doubt you can collect anything except a free sleep study off the government but, by law, an employee could go on at least short-term "disability (for up to 90 days) with a doctor's approval. It has to be doctor ordered and the condition has to prevent you from doing your job or puts others at risk (I.E. a communicable disease or in my case, a badly damaged leg that prevented me from standing for long periods). The law is the FMLA and covers all sorts of stuff that employers would otherwise just replace you for. "Moderate obstructive sleep apnea" sounds like you snore, or possibly stop breathing in your sleep- if you sleep for a living, you're elegible, if you die in your sleep, you're SOL. Posted by Saltah'na (Member # 33) on :
quote:Originally posted by Daniel Butler: I stolidly support the autopilot feature on modern aircraft. The only human pilot should be napping in the cockpit to conserve his mental alertness in case he's ever needed for something.
Fun party game: Take bets on how serious I'm being and fight over it!
It is possible. Apparently, according to an episode of Mythbusters, the modern autopilots can be set to automatically land a plane, no human assistance required.
Posted by The Ginger Beacon (Member # 1585) on :
I think they designed the A380 with the capacity to land on it's own.
Posted by Daniel Butler (Member # 1689) on :
I have to wear a CPAP or I become a shivering crying wreck of a pale sleepless monster. Doctor said I'd've died by 40 of a heart attack if I hadn't gotten it; my SO2 while I was asleep was below 85%. I actually don't know if that qualifies for 'moderate' or not...
I had read that 60% of pilots in an anonymous survey reported they had let the autopilot take the whole journey on its own. I was under the impression that an autopilot in most commercial aircraft *can* take off and land the plane with minimal assistance.
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
Yes, it's true that most modern airliners have the capability to fly the whole trip with minimal pilot input. I'm not sure how I feel about trusting my life to a computer at 30,000 ft though.
Posted by Daniel Butler (Member # 1689) on :
I honestly feel better about it than trusting it to a human. Especially at 30,000 feet where a human would get really bored just holding the plane steady for several hours (at least I sure would). Plus the computer can feel the gyros going over and correct faster than a human, I'd expect.
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Well, at least the pilots weren't text messaging.
Posted by Fabrux (Member # 71) on :
quote:Originally posted by Daniel Butler: Doctor said I'd've died by 40 of a heart attack if I hadn't gotten it;
Wait, what? How old are you again?
Posted by Sean (Member # 2010) on :
Like 20 something, I think. My dad has to sleep with one of those machines, because his snoring is so distracting that no one else can sleep with him going, and he actually stops breathing for a few minutes at a time, prompting someone to hit him, after which he continues breathing without remembering a thing. Thanks to that machine, I've been sleeping soundly for 3 years.
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
quote:Originally posted by Mars Needs Women: Well, at least the pilots weren't text messaging.
The shuttle driver at work used to do that. Now we have a new driver, and a new shuttle...
Posted by The Ginger Beacon (Member # 1585) on :
You'd be amazed at the number of people in my sleeply little urban sprall that drive texting or with a phone plastered to their ears.
Just make it a hanging offence - they won't do it again.
Posted by Kosh (Member # 167) on :
quote:Originally posted by Da_bang80: Yes, it's true that most modern airliners have the capability to fly the whole trip with minimal pilot input. I'm not sure how I feel about trusting my life to a computer at 30,000 ft though.
Gives the "Blue Screen of Death" a whole new meaning.
Posted by Daniel Butler (Member # 1689) on :
quote:Originally posted by Fabrux:
quote:Originally posted by Daniel Butler: Doctor said I'd've died by 40 of a heart attack if I hadn't gotten it;
Wait, what? How old are you again?
21.
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
quote:Originally posted by Kosh:
quote:Originally posted by Da_bang80: Yes, it's true that most modern airliners have the capability to fly the whole trip with minimal pilot input. I'm not sure how I feel about trusting my life to a computer at 30,000 ft though.
Gives the "Blue Screen of Death" a whole new meaning.
We're sorry but Windows Boeing Edition has encountered a problem and needs to close. Any unsaved altitude will be lost. The Flight Data Recorder has logged this incident as pilot error, we're sorry for any inconvenience.
Posted by Jason Abbadon (Member # 882) on :
Send error report Y/N?
Posted by Da_bang80 (Member # 528) on :
Attention: Computer restart in 10 seconds. Warning: Impact in 9 seconds. Pilot/Copilot: Dammit Bill...
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