Originally Posted by
vessbot
If "most" of us did, why not keep up some practice here at 9E in the CRJ? In 2 years and 1000 hours, I've seen someone else fly an instrument approach literally maybe twice. And even on the nicest and calmest of VFR days into quiet out of the way airports, a handful of times. If everyone was such a "flying machine," I wouldn't be hearing them say things like "I'm gonna have to hand fly this one in!" or "Now I'm gonna have to do a descending turn!" in an elevated voice when we get vectored in too tight or whatever. That would make me rest a little easier when riding in the back.
It sounds like you're on the 900. That mentality is a holdover from the Mesaba days. A lot of the instructors, particularly in management, originate from the Mesaba side. Hence why hand flying isn't exactly encouraged on that fleet. Hand flying is very common on the 200, even in New York and in IMC. People aren't hand flying every approach by any means, but in my experience, it's a marked difference from what I observed in my time on the 900. This isn't supposed to be some 9E vs XJ ****ing match, its just what my experience has been. You may have noticed that hand flying has been an area of emphasis during CQ PVs for the past couple years. An annual training event is not going to keep someone proficient in manual handling. We have a ton of leeway for hand flying in our manuals. If they refuse to make the effort to stay proficient in day to day line operations, that's on them. Not the training department, the hiring department, or anyone else.