Pilatus demonstrates automatic landing on PC-12 Pro for certification

Pilatus Aircraft has released footage of its autoland function landing a PC-12 Pro without pilot input. The Swiss manufacturer filmed the test landing at Friedrichshafen as part of the certification process. EASA and the FAA have now approved autoland for the aircraft.

Three people were on board. Test pilot Patrick Willcock, who has about 8,200 flight hours, including 3,000 on the PC-12 and 450 on the PC-12 Pro, kept his hands near the controls but did not intervene. He said afterwards that it felt unusual for a test pilot simply to watch rather than act, and that the landing was so calm and controlled that he never felt the need to step in.

The system is designed to take over when a pilot is suddenly incapacitated, such as during a medical emergency. A passenger can activate it at the push of a button, after which it handles radio communications and control of the aircraft through to the next airfield.

Pilatus had to demonstrate the complete automatic landing in front of EASA and FAA representatives to secure approval. Garmin's Autoland emergency system was used in a real situation for the first time in the United States in December 2025, landing a Beechcraft King Air 200 with two pilots on board at Rocky Mountain Metropolitan Airport in Colorado after a cabin pressure loss. Footage of a pilot pressing the button and handing control to the system had rarely been seen before.