Monday, November 2, 2015

ALTACAS

Takeoffs and landings account for 66 percent of fatal air accidents, but current air traffic control systems are designed mainly to monitor aircraft that are mid- flight [1]. The Aerial, Landing, and Takeoff Aircraft Crash Avoidance System (ALTACAS) was created to minimize that percentage. Through the use of lasers and microprocessors, ALTACAS monitors runways and flights paths during takeoff and landing. I believe this new invention has the capability to save money for aircraft part suppliers and increase credibility and business for airlines around the world.
             Latest data from www.planecrashinfo.com shows 20 percent of fatal accidents occurred during takeoffs and initial climb, while 46 percent occurring during initial approach, final approach, and landing. The majority caused by human errors [2]. ALTACAS will reduce accidents caused by human errors. Fewer accidents caused by human errors can potentially save the jobs of pilots, and crewmembers on the runway.
            Anyone flying alone or flying with their family, their main concern is safety. ALTACAS holds the potential to greatly increase the credibility for any airline that invests in this product. Any traveler looking to fly around the world would feel safe and secure knowing that their plane holds a new technology that ensures a safer flight. ALTACAS can also increase business and profit for airlines. If one airline invests in this product and their credibility increases, many more travelers will select that airline over their competition. More customers means more business, and more business means more profit for the airline.   
            ALTACAS does not affect the liability of manufacturers due to the fact that a majority of the accidents are caused by human error. But this new invention can possibly help those manufacturers save some money. I understand that manufacturers are consistently producing parts, but plane crashes and the demolishment of parts results in an increase of production from manufacturers, which can be more costly.  
Threats that come with the use technology must be taken into consideration by airlines when thinking about investing. Technology does make many factors much more easier, but technology can also fail. As an example, if ALTACAS shuts down while a plane is landing, the pilot must land the plane without help and increases the risk of accidents.  Technology also has a very tough time with handling exceptions.
            ALTACAS has the capability to become very successful. This new invention creates higher levels of credibility for airlines and can lead to greater sales. Travelers will maintain a better sense of security and protection while flying, which has the potential to lead to a higher percentage of humans traveling. If this new technology is deemed successful, future methods of transportation may also adopt to enhance safety.  The new technology used in ALTACAS can be transferred to enhance safety in other public transportations such as preventing collisions between trains and collisions between water transportation vehicles [3].

2 comments:

  1. I thought this blog did a great job of describing the problem, the solution, and the impact of the solution addressed in their article. The problem of course being fatal air accidents, and the hopeful solution ALTACAS. Above all else, efficiency is one metric companies seem to be paying the most attention to these. No company wants to have unnecessary errors, especially when those errors can lead to potential deaths. As noted in the article: “Takeoffs and landings account for 66 percent of fatal air accidents… Latest data from www.planecrashinfo.com shows 20 percent of fatal accidents occurred during takeoffs and initial climb, while 46 percent occurring during initial approach, final approach, and landing. The majority caused by human errors. “ Human errors are avoidable errors, and everything should be done to prevent them when they are costing lives, thankfully that’s where ALTACAS comes in. ALTACAS uses new high tech sensors to better track planes both before and after takeoff and landing. This reduces the quantity of accidents and increases safety, but as the article says this new technology has much more of an impact than just that.
    The first of these impacts would be the obvious increased efficiency. ALTACAS will increase the number of flights per day by reducing delay times. Think about how many times you have been delayed on the runway, stuck seemingly stuck purgatory. Since the new system can better track and organize the countless flights per day, backups and delays can be more easily avoided. This means airline companies can expect fewer delays, saving them money, and fly more planes per day, increasing their profits.
    The second of these un-seen impacts is the increased profit to the airline companies due to imporved saftey. Any companies that invest in this technology and help get it implemented could immediately see improvements. As this article explains, almost every fliers main concern is getting back safely. With ALTACAS companies can advertise this improved safety, something very desirable to consumers. Coupled with the reduced delayed time, ALTACAS can increase demand significantly allowing them to increase their price per ticket, to further increase profits.

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  2. While this product initially seemed like a good idea to me, as I continued to read through this post, I became more and more concerned about the potential risks ALTACAS has. I agree with Sean that a major concern would be if this product shut down and a pilot was forced to land the plane himself. Traditionally pilots have been in control of the take off and landings of aircrafts. However, with the increased reliance on technology to perform these tasks, I fear that pilot training and or pilot familiarity with successfully executing take offs or landings would diminish significantly. Another concern I have is the potential problem of ALTACAS being hacked. Tapping into the information that ALTACAS contains could be a serious problem and the safety that was previously ensured for passengers is no longer. If a hacker obtained control of the flight path it could alter that information, leaving the pilot's track to be skewed and in a dangerous situation. Also, if a hacker made it seem as if the runway was clear for either take off or landing, but in reality it was not, this could also raise harm and cause a very dangerous accident. While I have these concerns, I do not believe that ALTACAS should not be implemented, I just feel that it needs to be taken with a grain of salt and not so heavily relied on.

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