The Essex Autothrottle
 

Whatever happened to the Essex Autothrottle?

This was a brilliant piece of kit fitted to the last A/C I flew for a living.

It was voice activated, and had a wide range of functions, not all of which were always fully appreciated by pilots.

Technology moved on however, and I guess the supposed advantages of computers made this kit uneconomic. However it saved engines and airframes from abuse in ways that computers never could, but the bean counters would never have figured that out.