Day 782: Trump rails against technology that makes planes safer

It has been over 10 years since a U.S.-based commercial airplane crashed in a mass-casualty incident. That is due to a number of factors: better safety protocols, more pilot training, learning from previous accidents through investigations by the NTSB, technological advancements, increased regulations (including required pilot rest times) and more.

Donald Trump isn’t happy about the technological advancements, however. (This despite the fact that he tried taking credit for them a year ago.)

Trump — who doesn’t have a pilot’s license, has never flown a plane, and bankrupted an airline — is actually complaining about planes being “too complex to fly” like he has any idea what goes into aviation. His trope about “old and simpler” being better is nonsense, much like his “walls and wheels” rants.

Wheels and walls have both improved dramatically due to technological advancements over time. After all, there aren’t many cars on the road that drive on clay or stone wheels.

Similarly, aviation technology continues to make flying safer. The data is clear: Americans are flying more miles every year and yet the number of deaths on flights continues to decrease.

But Trump saw a plane crash in Ethiopia on Sunday and based solely on the fact that it did not reach its final destination determined that technology was to blame. Meanwhile, Trump flies around on Air Force One, one of the most sophisticated aircraft in the world.

782 days in, 680 to go

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