I agree, I cannot understand why so many people on this thread seem to believe the problem is too much automation
Because the
current problem is too much automation just like in the
long run the problem is too little automation. While the completely automated plane will happen one day the system is by no means ready for that to happen this decade, let alone this year or this month. There is a tremendous amount of work that needs to be accomplished first from regulations, to procedures, to testing, etc etc. Moreover, such planes will be thoroughly tested in GA or cargo operations long before they ever make it to commercial operations.
In the meantime, over-reliance on automation is a real problem right now and there is widespread (albeit not total) agreement on that point. There is much less agreement, however, as to what is to be done about such automation dependency.
If the plane or the pilot can't resort to a fundamentally "manual"or "analog" mode of flying, we will see this again and again no matter how good the technology.
This is a commonly expressed fallacy. It is erroneous because it evaluates the success of automation in light of an regulatory framework and an operating environment that was not designed for fully automated flight. The entire system has to change to accommodate fully automated flight and when it does this concern will disappear.