Originally Posted by robthree

The low time pilot can handle flying a jet every day just fine. They're proving it everywhere you look. But I have to agree with others that when the sh!t hits the fan, thats where the lack of experience will show.

In 500 hours of GA time how many emergencies did you have? Or how many times did an emergency nearly happen that your prior experience allowed you to avoid? Wouldn't anyone be better off with more experience than less?

Today's RJ captains, by and large, have thousands of hour in type, and years of 121 experience. They also, by and large, have CFI backgrounds. Its the ideal situation to maintain a safe, and cheap, environment. In a couple years when today's 500 hour Multi-Commercial FO upgrades to CA and has a brand spankin' new 250 hour fresh off IOE newbie pullling gear for him, that's when safety will really be compromised.