GMAT Critical Reasoning - Airline: Newly Developed Collision-Avoidance Systems

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byRituparna Nath Content Writer at Study Abroad Exams

Question: Airline: Newly developed collision-avoidance systems, although not fully tested to discover potential malfunctions, must be installed immediately in passenger planes. Their mechanical warnings enable pilots to avoid crashes.
Pilots: Pilots will not fly in planes with collision-avoidance systems that are not fully tested. Malfunctioning systems could mislead pilots, causing crashes.

The pilots’ objection is most strengthened if which of the following is true?
(A) It is always possible for mechanical devices to malfunction.
(B) Jet engines, although not fully tested when first put into use, have achieved exemplary performance and safety records.
(C) Although collision-avoidance systems will enable pilots to avoid some crashes, the likely malfunctions of the not-fully-tested systems will cause even more crashes.
(D) Many airline collisions are caused in part by the exhaustion of overworked pilots.
(E) Collision-avoidance systems, at this stage of development, appear to have worked better in passenger planes than in cargo planes during experimental flights made over a six-month period.

‘Airline: Newly developed collision-avoidance systems, although not fully tested to discover potential malfunctions’ – is a GMAT Critical question. To answer the question, a candidate can by either finding a piece of evidence that would weaken the argument or logical flaws in the argument. GMAT critical reasoning tests the logical and analytical skills of the candidates. This topic requires candidates to find the argument's strengths and weaknesses or the logical flaw in the argument. The GMAT CR section contains 10 -13 GMAT critical reasoning questions out of 36 GMAT verbal questions.

Answer: C

Explanation: This is a GMAT critical reasoning question. An assumption is an implied hypothesis. So we are looking for something that is implied in the argument. In case it is wrong or maybe disable the argument.
The statement states-
Airline: Newly developed collision-avoidance systems, although not fully tested to discover potential malfunctions, must be installed immediately in passenger planes. Their mechanical warnings enable pilots to avoid crashes.
Pilots: Pilots will not fly in planes with collision-avoidance systems that are not fully tested. Malfunctioning systems could mislead pilots, causing crashes.
We need to check the options to see which answer is most strengthened the pilots’ objection:
(A) It is always possible for mechanical devices to malfunction.
Option A is a general comment. It can be true for anything. Hence option A is not relevant.
(B) Jet engines, although not fully tested when first put into use, have achieved exemplary performance and safety records.
Option B strenthen Airlines argument rather than Pilots. So option B is insufficient.
(C) Although collision-avoidance systems will enable pilots to avoid some crashes, the likely malfunctions of the not-fully-tested systems will cause even more crashes.
Option C strengthens the pilot's argument. It states about the new system will cause more problems rather than solve them. Hence option C is the correct answer.
(D) Many airline collisions are caused in part by the exhaustion of overworked pilots.
Option D is an irrelevant piece of information. It can be true but it is irrelevant for this specific argument.
(E) Collision-avoidance systems, at this stage of development, appear to have worked better in passenger planes than in cargo planes during experimental flights made over a six-month period.
Option E strengthens airlines' case instead of Pilots. Hence option E is insufficient.

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