Financial problems arose in 1960, but were resolved when the magazine was bought out by
Dargaud publishers. Dargaud expanded the magazine with several new series, including Charlier and Giraud’s
Blueberry and Greg's
Achille Tallon in 1963. In 1967 the popular science-fiction series
Valérian et Laureline debuted and in 1968 the popular Western comedy
Lucky Luke (by Morris) was transferred to
Pilote from
Spirou magazine. Other notable appearances included series from the British comics magazine
Eagle such as ''Fraser l'Africain
(Fraser of Africa) and Winston Churchill'' by Frank Bellamy. Attempts were made in the 1970s to update the magazine with material of more interest to adults, but many artists like Druillet and Giraud felt
Pilote was no longer the appropriate vehicle for their aspirations and left to found new magazines such as
Métal Hurlant (the French original that inspired
Heavy Metal). Partly as a result, Dargaud reduced
Pilote’s publication schedule from weekly to monthly in 1974, and René Goscinny was replaced as editor-in-chief. At this time, a new generation of artists also started publishing in
Pilote, namely
Caza,
Lauzier, and
F'Murr. Their comics reflected the new, more adult direction. Sales initially improved but a steady erosion took place through the 1980s as interest in the medium declined.
Pilote was merged with the comics magazine
Charlie Mensuel in 1986 and continued as
Pilote et Charlie until 1988, when the name was changed back to
Pilote. However, declining sales prompted Dargaud to suspend publication after what became the final issue on 1 October 1989. After 1989, there has been no regular publications of the magazine, although the name has been used for occasional oversized specials. ==Main authors and series==