bathroamer

1. How much do pilots actually need to physically maneuver the plane? Like, is autopilot substantially a thing?

1. There are kind of... levels. Generally the smaller the aircraft the more likely you are to be manipulating it purely with physical controls. On most large aircraft nowadays, the controls are kind of like what's in your car, where the control column/sidestick is just simulating interacting directly with the controls and the computer is ultimately doing the work. Depending on the control philosophy, it might be made to feel very realistic (Boeing) or operates more like a game controller where all your inputs are interpreted heavily based on phase of flight (Airbus).

Autopilot is very much a thing and has gotten even more advanced now that we have things like GPS. A modern aircraft can be commanded to follow a set path, such as a particular instrument approach, and it'll do that no problem. But there are also different levels of autopilot. For example, in a simple heading mode the pilot changes what heading they want the plane to follow and the plane will automatically bank in a safe way to achieve that. In some cases, like in descending without a glideslope, managing the various autopilot modes and thrust settings to keep on profile is a skill in and of itself.

The main times you'll see manual control is during takeoff and landing. Takeoff is always a manual thing, though you might engage the autopilot pretty soon after to keep your climb steady. Landing is interesting- autoland has existed since the 1960s but is almost never used.

When landing, your approach will be precision or non-precision. A non-precision approach can be flown with the help of autopilot but it is ultimately up to the pilots to follow the guidance, stabilize the approach, and then disconnect autopilot at the cutoff point and land visually. A precision approach requires some sort of landing aid like an Instrument Landing System, which shoots out two beams on the ideal path to the runway and so long as the plane is flying at the intersection of those beams you are safe.

The most basic ILS approach is a Category I, which is kind of similar to the nomprecision approaches. It has a certain cutoff point where you need to see the runway and land visually, but this can be closer to the ground. Category II requires more precise ILS equipment and extra qualifications, and allows you to go even closer to the ground before seeing the runway. A Category III approach is an autoland and has even more stringent requirements. Ironically, then, the approach with the least automation (a simple visual approach) is the easiest! The others don't exist just to make life easier, but to enable landing in bad conditions without sacrificing safety.

As for the other question!

2. The aviation industry is incredibly, unbelievably global. It kind of has to be. If you wanted to fly a route from the USA to South Africa with a stopover in the UAE, how would you even do that if everybody's laws were different? So we've kind of agreed on a set of basic rules, set out by the International Civil Aviation Organization, to govern what countries should be doing regarding aviation law.

This goes all the way from "Hey, you should probably have a government organization that decides on and enforces aviation laws" to outlining the basic rules of what airlines are allowed to actually do. For example, if we just allowed companies to fly any route they wanted, you'd quickly see the local carriers of less affluent countries outcompeted by random foreign companies expanding into every market they see fit, being basically ungoverned by local laws. We all kinda decided that was probably a bad thing, so airlines are only allowed to fly routes to and from their own country (including stopovers and such).

I don't think there's really that much difference, then, beyond people generally knowing or caring more about aviation in their own country. For example I live near YYZ so I have an inordinate love of the Dash-8 lmao. But I also don't really chat with aviation fans from all over the world often, and there are also so many different things to nerd out about (routes, passenger experience, economics, safety, mechanics, automation, piloting, models, the people who want to fuck planes and are always telling me all the unasked for details of how they would fuck the planes...)

1. How much do pilots actually need to physically maneuver the plane? Like, is autopilot substantially a thing?

AIRBUS BELUGA XL