Why no co-pilot?

[MasterGwydion]

No one is suggesting that Astrogation tasks be eliminated. Just questioning the need to have it as an entirely distinct skill. As well as an entirely distinct job role on the ship. This thread is about 'why isn't there a copilot slot'? IMHO, that's what ships should have and the copilot can do the sensor ops and astrogation.

Co-pilots are from a time when someone had to actually fly the plane while the pilot went to the bathroom or actually had to navigate in the pre-GPS days. They also play a role in the pre-flight check of the aircraft, but even today, by and large, they are no longer needed. If you want to keep them as a sci-fi trope, the universe needs to not have the computers for automation. If you want to keep the computers and robots, it doesn't make sense to have a co-pilot. IMTU that Astrogation tasks are still things to do, but they are rolled using the Pilot (spaceships and capital ships) skill instead of the Astrogation skill.

 

[Condottiere]

Just seconds after take-off, both of the 12-year-old Boeing 787 Dreamliner's fuel-control switches abruptly moved to the "cut-off" position, starving the engines of fuel and triggering total power loss. Switching to "cut-off" is a move typically done only after landing.

The cockpit voice recording captures one pilot asking the other why he "did the cut-off", to which the person replies that he didn't. The recording doesn't clarify who said what. At the time of take-off, the co-pilot was flying the aircraft while the captain was monitoring.

The switches were returned to their normal inflight position, triggering automatic engine relight. At the time of the crash, one engine was regaining thrust while the other had relit but had not yet recovered power.