dailynewsnblog
While airliners are getting more fuel-efficient and cheaper to operate, crew costs are only going one way. Airlinesnow want to enhance their profit margins through single-pilot operations. Much like when the flight engineer role became redundant, the move could save on high costs. The current idea is to develop “extended Minimum Crew Operations” (eMCO) during low-workload parts of the flight. Rather than true single-pilot flying, a two-pilot crew could rotate while one rests, meaning there is no need for a third or fourth crew member.
The technology required for this move is within reach. However, regulatory caution is the main spoiler. The main barrier has been a US law signed in February 2026 that requires at least two rested pilots to be on every commercial passenger flight. We won’t see any single-pilot flying in commercial aviation until this law is removed.
A Time When Single-Pilot Flying Felt Imminent
2022 was the year it felt like single-pilot flying was imminent. The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) launched a proposal for flights to have just one pilot: “An Approach to New Concepts Involving Extended Minimum Crew Operations and Single Pilot Operations”. Travel Tomorrow reported that the EASA sent this working document to the International Civil Aviation Organization. The EASA argued that costs could be cut, and unexpected crew shortages would become less of a problem.
The EASA stated that the transition could occur as early as 2027. It acknowledged that aircraft manufacturers would have to significantly change cabin designs to guarantee that the change would be safe. The EASA also argued that the drastically decreased accident rate was a move that could introduce more possible risks. Automation would also reduce the high workload that would be experienced by the pilot.
The table below shows the areas that the EASA was exploring while conducting this exploration:
Field of inquiry | Meaning |
Safety risk assessment & monitoring | The hazards associated with eMCOs and SiPOs |
Human factors and performance | “Pilot workload, situational awareness, decision-making processes, and crew coordination.” |
Air operations | Exploring “flight procedures, communication protocols, and automation systems” to find opportunities for operational improvements. |
Fatigue risk management | How fatigue impacts pilot performance, safety and wellbeing, along with developing new fatigue management practices. |
Flight Training | How pilots can be prepared for single-pilot flying, such as teaching them how to use automation and respond to emergencies. |
Changing to single-pilot operations wouldn’t just add the co-pilot’s workload onto the captain. The EASA pointed towards a paradigm shift, stating, “This inevitably involves a change in the role of the pilot to become a systems administrator rather than a physical pilot.”
The Time Of Regulatory Cooperation Has Passed
The EASA’s enthusiastic exploration of single-pilot operation has not continued into a thawing of regulators’ opinions on single-pilot flying. No better is this shown than in the US government, which signed a law in February 2026 to remove any ambiguity on the number of pilots required to be in the cockpit. It dictated that two rested pilots must be present at all times. The decision has prevented the FAA from exploring further moves towards single-pilot operations.
The law applies to all sections of the flight. This includes cruise, a low-workload part of a flight where eMCO was considered. It will be interesting to see what new automations have been developed in recent years to lessen the workload even more during this phase of flight, and whether such developments change discussions about eMCO.
The February 2026 statute also blocks single-pilot operations (SiPO). These are prospective shorter commercial flights where just one pilot is present. This would be the most advanced type of single-pilot flying. Yet, eMCO would be a necessary precursor before SiPO would be acceptable. While this law is in place, commercial aviation can neither progress towards SiPO nor bring the practice in if the right technology suddenly becomes available.
Pilot Incapacitation Events Are The Main Concern
Shutterstock | Simple Flying
With the right technology and training, the vast majority of commercial flights could be carried out safely by a single pilot. However, the main concern is that it would only take a rare pilot incapacitation event for there to be a disaster that could lead to the deaths of hundreds of people: passengers, crew members, and those on the ground. Skybrary.aero defines pilot incapacitation as “the inability of a pilot, who is part of the operating crew, to carry out their normal duties because of the onset, during flight, of the effects of physiological factors.” A number of factors can cause pilot incapacitation, such as hypoxia, smoke and fumes, severe gastrointestinal problems (such as from food poisoning), and medical emergencies like a heart attack or stroke.
The table below includes some examples of accidents and incidents related to pilot incapacitation in recent years, as identified by Skybrary:
Aircraft | Location | Year | What happened? |
|---|---|---|---|
Airbus A320 | Indonesia | 2022 | The first officer noticed the captain was “in a rigid position.” A medically trained passenger was found, but they could not find signs of life. The first officer returned to land after 40 minutes. Resuscitation attempts on the ground sadly failed. |
Airbus A321 | Spain | 2024 | The captain returned to the flight deck after a short absence. He found that his first officer was suffering from a seizure, which began almost immediately after the captain left the flight deck. The aircraft diverted to Madrid, where the first officer received medical attention. |
Airbus A320 | Indonesia | 2024 | While the captain was intentionally sleeping, the first officer accidentally fell asleep. After 200 nautical miles (370 km) of flight and a significant deviation from the approved flight path, the captain woke up and roused their co-pilot. |
Data from European aviation safety monitoring authorities showed that there were 287 pilot incapacitation events from 2019 to 2024. This total amounted to one such event every six to seven days. Huge technological leaps forward would be needed for such events not to end in disaster if there was only one flight crew member in the cockpit.
Airlines And Manufacturers Have Been Developing Technology For Single-Pilot Flying
The controversy around single-pilot flying and subsequent regulatory decision to block moves in that direction will have been a disappointment for the airlines and manufacturers who had invested significant time, money and effort into technological and procedural developments. An example is Cathay Pacific. In June 2021, Simple Flying’s Pranjal Pande reported indications that single-pilot Airbus A350 flights would be possible by 2025 as per Cathay Pacific’s Project Connect. Long-haul A350 crews would be cut from three or four pilots to two.
Speaking about the project, Cathay Pacific said, “While we are engaging with Airbus in the development of the concept of reduced crew operations, we have not committed in any way to being the launch customer…The appropriateness and effectiveness of any such rollout as well as [the] overall cost-benefit analysis [will] ultimately depend on how the pandemic plays out.”
Even though the industry was making moves towards single-pilot aviation in the early 2020s, there was a clear reluctance among the airlines involved to be the first. Cathay Pacific confirmed its involvement but never made a decision about deploying single-pilot aviation. Reuters reported that the airline said, “While we are engaging with Airbus in the development of the concept of reduced crew operations, we have not committed in any way to being the launch customer.” Likewise, Lufthansa was working in this area but said it had no active plans to use single-pilot operations.
Pilots Unions Will Fight All Single-Pilot Flying
Shutterstock | Simple Flying
Even if airlines and manufacturers can persuade regulators that only one pilot is needed in the cockpit, the increased risk and likely redundancies would lead to substantial pushback from the aviation unions. In 2025, Air Line Pilots Association International (ALPA) wrote about its fight to ensure that there are always two pilots on the flight deck. Their work relates to reduced crew operations (RCO), as well as eMCO and SiPO. “When things go wrong, two professionals on the flight deck remain the essential safeguard for protecting passengers, crews, and cargo,” it says.
Safety is a central motivation, as is shown by the “Safety Starts with Two” campaign. This is ALPA’s work with the European Cockpit Association (ECA) and International Federation of Air Line Pilots’ Associations (IFALPA) coordinated messaging, joint statements, and shared evidence-based positions on the matter. “While manufacturers and some operators are testing regulatory boundaries, ALPA, the ECA, and IFALPA have responded by showing up wherever it matters, briefing civil aviation authorities, participating in panels and working groups, and equipping pilot leaders and line pilots with clear talking points,” writes ALPA.
ALPA is concerned that aircraft manufacturersand airlines will introduce technologies and procedures as “fatigue solutions” relevant to all types of aviation, before stealthily tying these concepts to single-pilot flying. “ALPA successfully opposed “proautomation” provisions that would have opened the door for reduced-crew possibilities and secured protective language, making clear that no federal funds should be used to advance reduced-crew initiatives,” writes the union.
