Critique Paper

Tom Farrier [Author], former US Air Force pilot and government safety contractor explains why Formatted: Highlight
commercial aircraft today are not ready to be fully automated, in his Forbes [Publication]article, Formatted: Font color: Background 2
answering the question, entitled[Source Thesis], “Why can’t aircraft controls be fully Commented [AL1]: It seems like the order of these pieces
automated.”. In his informative piece, Farrier does a great job of explaining specifically why of information could be switched around or split apart to
those who think replacing airline pilots with computers may want to reconsider[Your Thesis]. make this clearer.
Formatted: Font: Italic, Highlight
[Summary]Farrier acknowledges that [key point 1]pilots are the most error-prone system Formatted: Highlight
onboard any aircraft. [key point 2]They are also the most adaptable. [key point 3]There are Formatted: Highlight
infinite variables constantly evolving throughout any flight. While preprogrammed automated Formatted: Highlight
systems could technically perform in that environment, it would take tremendous planning and
Commented [AL2]: How so?
programming beforehand, on a case-by-case basis. Currently, the most advanced automated
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aircraft can fly themselves, but they do so without any regard to any persons or property around
them. This is potentially very dangerous. Farrier believes pilotless flight probably won’t be Commented [AL3]: Yikes.
practically feasible for decades. Commented [AL4]: Good reference to author. How could
you work in more attributions in the summary to make it
clear that these are his views and not your own or others he
[Critique]Given Farrier’s experience and credentials, the information he gives in his article is quotes?
very credible. I looked intentionally for fallacies and did not find any, making this a credible
resource. What he says makes sense and is not hard to understand or believe at all. His article Commented [AL5]: Good.
was clear, concise and accurate – all signs of an experienced aviator. Farrier’s piece is more
informative than persuasive or entertaining. He did accomplish his goal of informing the reader Commented [AL6]: Good.
of several reasons why aircraft can’t really be fully automated, at least not yet. He used facts as
well as his extensive knowledge base to clearly explain his statements. If there was an argument
to be made here, I’d say he did a good job making it with accurate information. He was also
objective in his delivery. At no point did I feel that he was injecting his own opinion as to why
airlines today are not ready to be fully automatic, he simply laid out observable facts confirmed
by his experience. His simple thesis was supported throughout the article. Commented [AL7]: But wouldn’t his opinions be of
value as well, given his experience? I’m reminded of a Star
Trek quote, when Kirk tells Spock that his educated
[Your Response]My response to the piece is positive. I appreciate Farrier’s knowledge and guesses are better than most people’s facts. .And I had to
experience, so I have no trouble believing what he says. It also affirms my own knowledge and look it up, from my favorite ST movie, the Voyage Home,
experience related to the subject. I like how he laid out what he had to say clearly, objectively, “Spock: I made an educated guess.
Kirk: You guessed, Spock? That's incredible!
fairly and confidently. At no point did I find myself saying, “Tthat doesn’t make sense,” or, Spock: I do not think he understands the situation.
“Tthat doesn’t seem right.”. Farrier affirmed for me, although I did share his view even before I McCoy: [To Spock] It means that he is more
confident in your guesses than he is in most people's
read his article, that airliners are not ready to be fully automated and probably won’t be for a facts.
while. Although he did not touch on the many other reasons why this is not a practical concept “
yet, he did open up my mind to a perspective that I had not yet given much thought that is a big
factor in my research idea. He spoke about how an automated aircraft affects everything around Commented [AL8]: necessary?
it, not just itself. It would have tremendous destructive power over people and property on the
ground. We cannot only focus on the issues of controlling that one aircraft alone when it would
potentially be flying over all our heads. Commented [AL9]: And we have to consider what
happened on September 11 with this.
[Conclusion]To conclude, Farrier’s article is effective in showing us that commercial aviation
has a way to go before we can actually consider making a pilotless passenger-carrying aircraft
operational.

Reference

Farrier, Tom. “Why Can't Aircraft Controls Be Fully Automated?” Forbes, Forbes Magazine, 25
Sept. 2017, www.forbes.com/sites/quora/2017/09/25/why-cant-aircraft-controls-be-fully-
automated/amp/ (Links to an external site.)Links to an external site..