A YouGov survey reveals that nearly 50% of male respondents believe they could safely land a passenger aircraft with air traffic control guidance, while about one-third of all adult Americans share this confidence.
Aviation experts strongly disagree, explaining that takeoffs and landings are the most difficult tasks pilots perform and require extensive training that spans years from recreational to commercial licenses.
Boeing 737 instructor Petter Hörnfeldt acknowledges that while some larger aircraft have autoland functions, operating them requires dozens of complex steps and intimate knowledge of cockpit instruments that novices simply don't possess.
Professional pilots undergo hundreds of hours of training covering aerodynamics, air law, meteorology, navigation, and aircraft-specific systems before they can safely operate commercial aircraft with passengers onboard.
While smaller aircraft offer better odds for emergency landings by untrained individuals, as demonstrated when a BBC journalist successfully landed a two-seater plane in 2022, experts emphasize that landing commercial passenger jets without training has virtually zero chance of success.
