The history of aeronautics has been marked by a number of revolutionary breakthroughs influencing both designers and users. A major example is the advent of jet aircraft. In flight deck instrumentation the technical revolution has followed a steadier course, enabling a gradual evolution from the rudimentary instruments used on yesterday's aircraft to the sophisticated instruments used today.

In this respect, the information displayed has evolved both in quantity and quality. This has gradually led to new flight deck designs such as that used in the Airbus A 300. The impression of a gradual evolution in instrument technology is due to the fact that information is often displayed in the same manner as before, i.e. using dial indicators. Today, a new revolution is taking place in commercial aircraft flight decks: the use of digital systems displaying processed data on cathode ray tube (CRT) displays.

Preliminary Studies. The use of CRT in flight deck instrumentation has been under study for a number of years. Many aircraft are already fitted with CRT for specific applications such as weather radar information and computer-processed data (on display units linked with computers).

The present CRT breakthrough is tending to compete with or replace conventional instruments. This tendency started in 1968–70, giving rise to a number of preliminary studies, with military aviation quickly taking the lead. Studies were also carried out in commercial aviation, for example those of the Boeing SST programme which, as is commonly known, was later cancelled.