After Alps crash, Turkish Airlines CEO tells pilots to get married

Turkish Airlines' CEO said pilots may not be as prone to destructive behavior like that of the Germanwings pilot believed to have intentionally crashed a flight last month - if only they get married.

Temel Kotil spoke about the March 24 crash in the French Alps as he addressed new Turkish Airlines pilots on Thursday.

"Our pilot friends, whether they are men or women, their lifestyles are very important," he said.

"The accident there happened, I believe, after the (pilot) separated from his girlfriend," Kotil said.

"Therefore, I am guiding those who are single toward marriage from this podium," he added.

Last month's crash has sparked renewed debate over autonomous jets.

At the very least, some have suggested allowing authorities on the ground to take control of a plane if there is a rogue pilot in the cockpit.

Fraught with problems

The head of Germany's air traffic control agency raised such a prospect on Wednesday.

Such moves might seem logical in the aftermath of this crash, but industry experts warn that the technology is fraught with problems.

Each year, more than 3 billion people around the globe step aboard some 34 million flights. Fewer than 10 crashes were deliberately caused by commercial pilots in the last three decades.

There was a time when riding an elevator without an operator seemed unimaginable.

Today, people don't think twice about stepping into an empty elevator.

Todd Humphreys, a University of Texas professor of aerospace engineering, says it isn't hard to go one step further and have the pilots watching those same screens from a room on the ground.

"Anything you can control with knobs or buttons, without getting out of your seat, can be done equally well - or even better - on the ground," Humphreys said.