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If you disengage with flying or driving the consequences can be catastrophic in seconds.

Fewer things to hit in the sky but you can never be complacent.

Imagine playing an iPhone game while PIC and accidentally flying into the clouds? The CFIT stats are terrifying.

Nonsense. What you're saying is true for smaller planes and 'manual' planes, but planes that have autopilot are by standards and by design required to warn the PIC of any issues with enough time to reasonably respond.

There is almost never a situation where a plane on autopilot can face catastrophe in <20 seconds.

Agreeing with you and just adding support by pointing out that’s precisely why autopilot isn’t used during takeoffs and landings...because seconds do matter in those scenarios

Plenty - an older plane and a midair collision. Bird strike. etc

It's extremely uncommon for a bird strike to down a plane. They cause one fatal accident every billion flight hours.

Midair collisions are why we have ADS-B (even in my dad's little four-seater prop plane) and TCAS. The are also exceedingly uncommon.

People driving into a ditch, pedestrian, barrier, or oncoming traffic is commonplace.

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