4 ms·

In a plane when an auto pilot fails the pilot is still culpable.

foepys 6y ago
Stop the comparison to planes just because it's named autopilot in both cases. There are always 2 highly trained professionals in a cockpit and both are familiar with emergency situations because they regularly train for it. They are in constant contact with ATC that keeps other planes far away from them. In case of a crash or even a deviation there are entire agencies all over it with sometimes international investigators present. All communication is recorded. A driver is not only alone, they can have very poor skills in general which were last tested 40 years ago. They are on the road with dozens of vehicles around them, tightly packed and often separated by less than a vehicle width between them. If a crash occured there may be a few police officers present that pick up the pieces and fill out forms to satisfy the insurance.
- perilunar 6y ago
  > There are always 2 highly trained professionals in a cockpit... Nup. Sometimes it's just one barely trained amateur.
  - usrusr 6y ago
    And those are still far more regulated than drivers, and they would be regulated even stricter would they routinely kill others without being harmed themselves. Meanwhile, cars are advertised by how well they protect the driver in events that likely involve killing others.
  - JoeAltmaier 6y ago
    That's silly. There's a huge difference between the 'barely trained amateur' and the average person in coach. Who drives a car.
- manquer 6y ago
  Commerical flying should not be equated to amateur driving. Amatuer flying does not require a second person or many other safety requirements. Commerical driving does have higher standards on number of hours , certifications etc Lack of adequate recurring certifications or poor standards does not absolve the driver of his responsibily towards himself and more importantly to others on and near the road, same as the pilot , inadequate oversight is not an excuse. driving a 2+ton vehicle that at the typical speeds can be fatal or cause major injury you are responsible period. Same for any other equipment or a pet
  - URSpider94 6y ago
    Once you get to L3 self-driving, you delegate full responsibility to the car, even if only under limited circumstances. Many L4 cars will not even have steering wheels or pedals, and won’t have a pilot’s seat. A lot of prototypes turn the front seats around to face the back row. Do you still believe that the driver is responsible under those circumstances? Anything L2 or under is a “driver assistance system”, and the driver maintains control and responsibility at all times. All of the systems in recreational or commercial aircraft today (autopilot, auto-land) are L2 or less. This is why it’s very critical that automakers not blur the lines to drivers. We are approaching an inflection point as to who is responsible behind the wheel, the car or the AI.
hugh-avherald 6y ago
That's not generally true. It would generally be the manufacturer if the autopilot failed (as opposed to disengaging).
Jasper_ 6y ago
The last time a plane's flight system screwed up big time, the manufacturer was found to be at fault, all models of that plane were grounded, and it was a massive public scandal.
- jiofih 6y ago
  That’s mechanical / system failure, like Toyota’s “sudden acceleration” problem years ago. The question is about wrong decisions made by self driving, where there is no clear failure mode.

Stop the comparison to planes just because it's named autopilot in both cases. There are always 2 highly trained professionals in a cockpit and both are familiar with emergency situations because they regularly train for it. They are in constant contact with ATC that keeps other planes far away from them. In case of a crash or even a deviation there are entire agencies all over it with sometimes international investigators present. All communication is recorded. A driver is not only alone, they can have very poor skills in general which were last tested 40 years ago. They are on the road with dozens of vehicles around them, tightly packed and often separated by less than a vehicle width between them. If a crash occured there may be a few police officers present that pick up the pieces and fill out forms to satisfy the insurance.

perilunar 6y ago
> There are always 2 highly trained professionals in a cockpit... Nup. Sometimes it's just one barely trained amateur.
- usrusr 6y ago
  And those are still far more regulated than drivers, and they would be regulated even stricter would they routinely kill others without being harmed themselves. Meanwhile, cars are advertised by how well they protect the driver in events that likely involve killing others.
- JoeAltmaier 6y ago
  That's silly. There's a huge difference between the 'barely trained amateur' and the average person in coach. Who drives a car.
manquer 6y ago
Commerical flying should not be equated to amateur driving. Amatuer flying does not require a second person or many other safety requirements. Commerical driving does have higher standards on number of hours , certifications etc Lack of adequate recurring certifications or poor standards does not absolve the driver of his responsibily towards himself and more importantly to others on and near the road, same as the pilot , inadequate oversight is not an excuse. driving a 2+ton vehicle that at the typical speeds can be fatal or cause major injury you are responsible period. Same for any other equipment or a pet
- URSpider94 6y ago
  Once you get to L3 self-driving, you delegate full responsibility to the car, even if only under limited circumstances. Many L4 cars will not even have steering wheels or pedals, and won’t have a pilot’s seat. A lot of prototypes turn the front seats around to face the back row. Do you still believe that the driver is responsible under those circumstances? Anything L2 or under is a “driver assistance system”, and the driver maintains control and responsibility at all times. All of the systems in recreational or commercial aircraft today (autopilot, auto-land) are L2 or less. This is why it’s very critical that automakers not blur the lines to drivers. We are approaching an inflection point as to who is responsible behind the wheel, the car or the AI.

hugh-avherald 6y ago

That's not generally true. It would generally be the manufacturer if the autopilot failed (as opposed to disengaging).

Jasper_ 6y ago

The last time a plane's flight system screwed up big time, the manufacturer was found to be at fault, all models of that plane were grounded, and it was a massive public scandal.

jiofih 6y ago
That’s mechanical / system failure, like Toyota’s “sudden acceleration” problem years ago. The question is about wrong decisions made by self driving, where there is no clear failure mode.