\n<\/p>\n
Perhaps the last of those is the most dramatic. <\/p>\n
Malcolm Ridley, Chief Test Pilot of Airbus’s commercial aircraft, reassured us that the risk of being involved in an air accident is “vanishingly small”.<\/p>\n
However, aircraft and crew need to be ready for any scenario, so Project Dragonfly tested an automatic emergency descent system.<\/p>\n
The idea is this technology will take over if the pilots need to focus on heavy decision-making or if they were to become incapacitated. <\/p>\n
Under its own control, the plane can descend and land, while recognising other aircraft, weather and terrain.<\/p>\n
The system also allows the plane to speak to air traffic control over the radio with a synthetic voice created through the use of artificial intelligence. <\/p>\n
It is a lot for the plane’s systems to take on. <\/p>\n
One of the challenges was teaching the system to understand all of the information and create a solution, says Miguel Mendes Dias, Automated Emergency Operations Designer. <\/p>\n
“The aircraft needs to, on its own, recover all the information. So it needs to listen for the airport messages from air traffic control. <\/p>\n
“Then it needs to choose the most suitable airport for diversion,” he said. <\/p>\n
Project Dragonfly performed two successful emergency descents.<\/p>\n
During the test flights, French air traffic controllers fully understood the situation and the aircraft landed safely. <\/p>\n
“It was really an amazing feat,” says Mr Mendes.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n