EUROPEAN CIVIL AVIATION CONFERENCE - CONFÉRENCE EUROPÉENNE DE L'AVIATION CIVILE

Artificial intelligence (AI)

More and more data are digital, and information technology evolves fast and continuously in all domains of activities of our societies. This has growing impacts on the aviation sector.

Artificial intelligence (AI) can be defined as human intelligence simulated by machines, especially computer systems, capable of learning and reasoning like a human being. Artificial intelligence is a key enabler of innovation.

The use of artificial intelligence in aviation can help in taking better, more informed decisions; for example with the analysis of higher volume of data – an amount of data that humans cannot possibly process alone based on their own experience and knowledge.

We can already see successful implementation of artificial intelligence (AI) in air traffic management and air traffic control operations, in airports, U-space and avionics. Other examples of applications integrating artificial intelligence include dynamic ticket pricing, customer services, flight optimisation, delay/trajectory predictions, crew scheduling, and predictive maintenance. And there are many more to come.

The use of artificial intelligence in the aviation industry brings a series of opportunities and challenges, such as ensuring the trustworthiness of AI applications used on safety critical systems, that need to be further discussed and addressed by ECAC Member States, and in particular from a more strategic and policy perspective.