Originally Posted by
KSwift76
What would it look like if lots of pilots filed general FSAPS with respect to the fact that A LOT of people who are upgrading right at 1 year are probably not ready. I fly with mostly u39____ FOs and am still constantly doing SOE (secondary OE). Routinely, the ones that take an upgrade right at 1 year are the ones who probably shouldn't. The ones who say "no way am I ready to upgrade at 1 year" seem to have better judgement and awareness. 🤷🏿♂️. It's not rocket science, but it does require a little experience and the only way to get experience, is to experience it.
I brought this up to ALPA the last time I was called after a PDR and was told that a general FSAPs voicing my concerns was not a terrible idea (so long as it wasn't about a specific pilot, which I would never do) and it would force the company as well as the FAA to provide a little more scrutiny.
Reality is...some are ready at 1 year, some are not. Anyone can do hold it. In the interest of safety, not everybody should as soon as they can.
The sim training for upgrade is highly scripted, and not difficult, especially if you’re upgrading on the same plane and can take the short course. Learn the script, pass the sim. It’s all up to the LCA’s. Captain OE should be very thorough and captain candidates shouldn’t get signed off unless they prove that they’re ready. Depending on their background, many will be. Someone with thousands of hours PIC at one of our regionals wouldn’t have much trouble, where a low time pilot with no PIC time paired up with an inexperienced FO would be a disaster waiting to happen.