Originally Posted by
Timbo
As Capt. I always preferred the F/O to fly the first leg, so I could go talk to the F/A's, get my coffee, do the walk around, stretch out and relax, while Junior does all the mundane crap like loading the box. That way I don't have to rush to do all of the above...AND load the box. It just seemed to go smoother if we divide up the work, vs. me trying to do it all on the first leg.
Also, I can ass-ess his flying skills on the first leg, so I'll know if I'm going to be able to sleep on the next 3 legs...
One time in my Captain life I let the FO take the first leg because it was EWR-MSP and he lived in MSP and it was a big deal for him. He was a new hire.
That was a colossal mistake.
Had I taken it I might have picked up on some deficiencies prior to that non existent flare.
Then again I let a new hire take it on his first leg out on his first trip. I don't remember why I did that but luckily for me that guy rocked.
I was offered the first leg once as a new hire on the ER and I kind of regretted that. It was a nice gesture but the Captain was a micromanager (the only one I ever met on that airplane), it'd been easier not to do that first leg.