Originally Posted by
BoilerUP
My company doesn't have a written ops manual; what we do have is two professional pilots that communicate very well with each other and aren't afraid to call out when the other isn't flying the way they are supposed to.
What is "supposed to", one might ask, without a written policy? Short answer is you KNOW what the 'right' way is, long answer is following profiles provided by the manufacturer and/or Part 142 training providers.
We don't have an SMS manual either, but that doesn't stop us from having a highly effective safety management system in the two guys up front...but I digress
My point being, if one of the folks in a crew seat is a d-bag or cowboy, having an ops manual won't do anything to change that negative attitude.
Ditto. My last operation didn't have any written SOP's when I came aboard. But since it was a two pilot operation, it wasn't very long before we had "unwritten familiarity" with each others styles and habits. Much of our communication when flying together was non-verbal.
SOP's are only as good as they are written. We have them at my current operation and I'd surmise that some of our guys (although very standardized, professional and safe) couldn't tell you a quarter of the detailed specifics in our ops manual.