FutureFlight
Beyond Automation: How Artificial Intelligence Is Transforming Aviation
Artificial intelligence isn’t only changing the way airplanes fly—it’s transforming nearly every aspect of aviation on the ground, too.
A computer-generated 3D diagram of a generic airplane
Generative artificial intelligence tools will become far more useful when aerospace companies start integrating them with their own intellectual property. (Image: GridRaster)

More than a century after the invention of the autopilot, aerospace engineers are still working to bring more automated processes into aircraft cockpits to enhance safety, increase efficiency, and reduce pilot workload. With the help of artificial intelligence (AI), autopilot technology has evolved from simple devices that maintain an aircraft’s altitude and heading to fully autonomous flight control systems capable of performing gate-to-gate operations without any human input. 

One way or another, almost every aerospace and defense company is looking to exploit the potential for AI to improve their aircraft and other systems. This ubiquitous and rapidly morphing technology sphere has sparked extensive discussions at major international aerospace events recently, such as this year's Paris Airshow and the annual European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition.