[mikeash]

Additionally, pilots rarely need second-by-second reactions. There are times when you do, and you want to maintain awareness, but the odds of crashing because you took 15 seconds to look at a map are extremely low. The odds of crashing because you're focusing on details and forget to keep track of where you are or how much fuel you have or other long-term items are much higher. The requirements for awareness in a car are completely different, where a brief lapse in attention can easily get you killed, but the long-term picture is rarely critical.

[Sami_Lehtinen]

Well, taking changes is not the point. There are two pilots, at least one of them should be looking out all the time, doing scanning. It's unfortunate when two airliners collide, because nobody was watching where they're flying. It has been happening. Even in situations when both planes have been already warned about the precense of other planes.

Problem with planes is really high speed, so the plane can be just a pinhead, even if there's good visibility and in the following 15 seconds you're doing something else, is enough to collide.

[mikeash]

A lot of airplanes only have one pilot.

It comes down to probabilities. While driving, stare at a map for 15 seconds. What are the odds that you crash? Probably quite high. Better than 50/50, I'd say. Now, when flying, stare at a map for 15 seconds. What are the odds that you crash? It's not zero, but it's close.