The head of the International Air Transport Association (IATA) says he believes it will be decades before single-pilot airline operations are allowed. IATA Director General Willie Walsh told a media briefing in Geneva this week that the industry isn’t ready for that kind of change. “I don’t expect to see a move to single-pilot operation, if ever,” he said at a media briefing in Geneva. “Certainly I don’t see it in the next 15, 20, maybe 25 years.”
The topic gained some traction last week when the European Union sent a formal request, on behalf of 40 countries, to the International Civil Aviation Authority (ICAO) to set technology and operational standards for single-pilot passenger operations. Walsh told reporters that technology has come a long way since he flew 737-200s for Aer Lingus in the 1980s, but it’s only that background that would make him consider getting on such a flight. “Given that I was a pilot, I’d be happy to sit in one seat and take over if necessary,” Walsh joked.
