Panic has erupted in the cockpit of AirFrance Flight 447. The pilots are convinced they’ve lost control of the plane. It’s lurching violently. Then, it begins plummeting from the sky at breakneck speed, careening towards catastrophe. The pilots are sure they’re done-for.
Only, they haven’t lost control of the aircraft at all: one simple manoeuvre could avoid disaster…
In the age of Artificial Intelligence, we often compare humans and computers, asking ourselves which is “better”. But is this even the right question? The case of AirFrance Flight 447 suggests it isn’t – and that the consequences of asking the wrong question are disastrous.
Further reading
Jeff Wise, “What Really Happened Aboard Air France 447,” Popular Mechanics, December 6, 2011
William Langewiesche, “The Human Factor” Vanity Fair, October 2014
“Children of the Magenta,” 99% Invisible podcast, June 23, 2015
Nick Oliver, Thomas Calvard, Kristina Potočnik (2017) Cognition, Technology, and Organizational Limits: Lessons from the Air France 447 Disaster. Organization Science 28(4):729-743
Cockpit Transcripts in French and English
Fabrizio Dell’Aqua Falling Asleep At the Wheel – Working Paper
Luchins, A. S. (1942). Mechanization in problem solving: The effect of Einstellung. Psychological Monographs, 54(6),
You Are Not So Smart Episode 281 – on AI and Brainstorming
James Reason Human Error