I remember reading the story in the business section of the local bugle here, the important thing to remember is that in IT, just as in show business, there's no such thing as bad publicity. The proposal was floated by the owner of a software firm, and this industry has been bleeding all year. I seriously doubt that it was a serious proposal; I think they were just using 9/11 as an opportunity to get their names in the paper. As a full-time programmer and weekend pilot I can tell you that given the current state of technology there is simply no way that such a complex system could be made reliable enough to entrust with human lives.