Your linked article says pretty much the same as the Economist quote in the original post:
"While passenger flights may not lose their pilots for some time, researchers currently believe commercial cargo flights may lose them sooner if the technology proves reliable and safe through similar tests and smaller-scale real-world application. For passenger flights, researchers believe it is more likely that such autonomous systems will first serve as a backup for a live pilot flying in the aircraft."
I would agree with the OP - it will be many, many years before George is alone on the flight deck in front of a cabin full of live passengers.