It’s already happening on the highways with driverless cars. According to the news service report, predictions are that within a dozen years, human pilots will be gone from some airliners.

Expectations also are that ground-controlled commercial flying will be safer. Sophisticated automated functions would eliminate the human error factor, such as live pilots making wrong decisions and physical impairment suddenly happening in the cockpit.

One of the predictions is of reduced ticket prices, considering that today’s airline pilots get hefty salaries, expense accounts and benefits. The scientific beancounters estimate the savings would be as much as $35 billion annually. A sad note about pilotless airliners for crews is that membership participation in the mile high club would also be greatly reduced.