Word: robotized
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Practiced Robot...
Year and a half ago Eastern Air Transport equipped one of its passenger planes with the Sperry "robot" pilot, a gyroscopic device which automatically keeps a plane on a set course (TIME. Oct. 19, 1931). In principle it was a success. But just as a human novice may fly a plane safely but clumsily, the robot pilot was awkward. Its worst fault was the same as the common fault of the human: slamming the controls this way & that. Besides jerking the ship about, it strained the controls. Since the robot first appeared, Sperry engineers and airline operators have been busy...
Last week another ship stood at the head of the Cranwell runway. Like the first one, it was a Fairey-Napier. But it was equipped with improvements learned from the previous experiences. A "robot" steering device was installed. Running gear was made double-strong for rough landings. A cabin hatch was cut for observations of the stars. Fuel tanks were built to hold 1,000 gal. In the cabin was a bed for the pilot off watch. Experts spent months in plotting the course for favorable topography and weather...
...handsome youngster named Flight-Lieut. Gilbert E. Nicholetts. As the big plane lumbered down the concrete runway, sparks spouted comet-like from her tailskid. It was 7:15 a.m. By 7 :15 p. m. she was roaring across the north coast of Africa. During most of the day, the "robot" controls had steadied her through thick weather. Not until they were over the Sahara that night could the pilots take a star sight...
...second day, after passing Nigeria, the robot pilot quit, leaving the human pilots to guess their way through rain squalls and the second night...