A
glass cockpit is an
aircraft cockpit that features electronic (digital)
flight instrument displays, typically large
LCD screens, rather than the traditional style of
analog dials and gauges. While a traditional cockpit (nicknamed as a "steam cockpit" within aviation circles) relies on numerous mechanical gauges to display information, a glass cockpit uses several displays driven by
flight management systems, that can be adjusted (
multi-function display) to display flight information as needed. This simplifies aircraft operation and navigation and allows
pilots to focus only on the most pertinent information. They are also popular with airline companies as they usually eliminate the need for a
flight engineer, saving costs. In recent years the technology has become widely available in small aircraft.