A key question is whether the plane's advanced flight management system -- the autopilot -- might have played a role in the most recent crash as it did in the fatal crash of an Indonesian Airlines 737 MAX 8 last October. In that crash, it appears the pilots failed to disengage the autopilot when the plane's nose began pitching up and down,
No.. this is not about the autopilot. The suspicion (which is only a suspicion so far) is about another system called MCAS. Roughly speaking (specially because I have not enough knowledge to speak on this regard with confidence), this is meant to help pilots prevent a stall.
The MAX family has more powerful engines, and they are a bit projected ahead under the wings. This makes the plane susceptible to point its nose up during full throttle, which could lead to a stall.
This system shouldn't be confused with the regular autopilot. It plays a completely different role and, the way it's designed, it should engage only under very specific conditions.
