> It is however a great goal, one which spells safer, faster, and consecutive safer technology with every step.

Not quite. Too much automation leads to bored humans who aren't used to doing things themselves. If they then have to take over in an emergency, it often doesn't go well since they haven't even been practicing under normal circumstances.

At some point, it's probably best to take the human out of the loop entirely (even in emergencies), but where that point is will depend not only on the task at hand, but also on the individual human.

I expect we're at the point where a computer can do a better job than a mediocre pilot.

For example, see Air France 447. It looks like it would have ended well if the pilots had ignored the emergency and let the autopilot deal with it. It also would have been fine if the pilots knew how to fly the plane with the automation turned off.