<p>&nbsp;This research study evaluates the role of policy regarding the use of automation in&nbsp;flight on the safety of aviation in the United States. Specifically, following the&nbsp;investigation of several high-profile aircraft mishaps that identified misuse or overuse of&nbsp;automation at inappropriate times during flight, several best practices have developed&nbsp;among airline operators as to the acceptable use of flight automation. However, there has&nbsp;never been a coordinated governmental policy on the use of automated equipment,&nbsp;procedures, or communication promulgated by the Federal Aviation Administration&nbsp;(FAA), the International Civil Aviation Organisation (CIAO), or industry work groups.&nbsp;&nbsp;While there has been considerable research among social scientists on the impact&nbsp;of human error and misunderstanding on automated systems, and while great progress&nbsp;has been made in the area of human factor consideration in designing air planes and the&nbsp;systems used to control them, there has been little research on the public policy aspect of&nbsp;these considerations. Even though the FAA has established a research group specifically&nbsp;dedicated to the impact of human factor considerations on flying (Chandra ' Gray hem,&nbsp;2012), there has been no subsequent discussion on the policy changes those results should&nbsp;dictate.&nbsp;</p>