Impact of Reduced Crew Operations on Airlines -Operational Challenges and Cost Benefits

摘要

Reduced Crew Operations envision the possibility of reducing the cockpit crew to one pilot and ultimately elimination of onboard pilots towards a fully autonomous aircraft. However, for the backup and increased safety, human pilots can be repositioned on ground to remotely monitor and control the aircraft. This study highlights various technological, operational and social challenges that are necessary to be resolved before realization of such operations for airline industry. Furthermore, different scenarios for level of autonomy and human role as controller/monitor are assessed for direct operational costs to explore the potential benefits and losses for domestic and long haul flights.