Speaking of LCA's.... back in 1992, I got my very first Delta line check as a 6mo. MD88 Captain, the leg was ATL-PNS. My F/O was brand new, second line trip, neither one of us were former Navy and we had never been into PNS. This was about 6 months after a Delta MD88 had run off the end of the runway at PNS.
It was a typical July day, hot and hazy, maybe 3 miles vis in haze, we are cleared directly to the airport and the approach controller is asking us if we have the airport in sight, we are still 20 miles out descending.
I say to the F/O, "Tell him we want a vector for a 10 mile straight in.". F/O does, we get our turn on vector, turn 30 degrees left and intercept the LOC about 10 out, get configured and land normally, taxi to the gate, shutdown, another on time arrival.
The LCA then precedes to debrief me. "Well, that wasn't the most fuel efficient approach but I guess it was ok.".
There was a big push on the pilots to 'save fuel' back then too, just like all this Flaps 25 in the 757 today.
So I look at the LCA and say, "Neither one of us have ever been here before, there was no way I could accept a 'visual' approach with no landmarks, 20 miles out, and how much fuel does it take to pull a Mad Dog out of the grass and tow it to the gate?".
