automatic pilot
2
3.9
- noun
- /ˈɔːtəmætɪk ˈpaɪlət/
- Specialized
:
piloto automático
- During long flights, pilots often rely on the automatic pilot to manage the aircraft's navigation and controls.
- a plane on automatic pilot
- switch to automatic pilot
And so he, the, the automatic pilot on our plane took over and that's what made us go on our side.
- And so he, the, the automatic pilot on our plane took over and that's what made us go on our side.
Examples
-
This was designed to be carried out with both planes on automatic pilot.
Fiction book (1996) -
Captain Harris had programmed and trained those automatic pilot systems himself.
Fiction book (1999) -
You can sort of turn on the automatic pilot.
-
In ten minutes, switch to automatic pilot and go into the escape unit.
-
Put it on automatic pilot.
-
Then switch to automatic pilot.
Fiction book (2002) -
The automatic pilot is still engaged.
Fiction book (1997) -
I'll unlock the automatic pilot.
-
The plane is on automatic pilot, the crew totally unaware of the delivery plane's presence.
Fiction book (1996) -
Disengage the automatic pilot.
Synonyms
36
3.9
A device that steers a plane, ship, or spacecraft without someone controlling it
15
5.0
A group of devices that automatically steer a vehicle like a rocket or plane
1
4.1
A computer system on a plane or drone that automatically keeps it steady and guides it
An automatic machine that controls a ship, plane or spacecraft without a person
A machine that automatically controls the path of a vehicle like a missile or aircraft
How Automatic
Surface Forms
Morphology
The constituents 'automatic' (self-operating) and 'pilot' (operator) transparently combine to suggest the idea of automatic control — learners who know both words can infer the literal sense (as in an aircraft's autopilot). However, its use for human behaviour is a metaphorical extension (meaning acting without conscious thought) and the pragmatic nuance may not be fully predictable without exposure, so it is only partially transparent.
Etymology
Automatic pilot comes from early machines that could steer a plane or ship by themselves. The word pilot meant the person who steers and automatic meant 'working by itself', so the phrase came to mean 'a device that automatically controls the steering'.