Originally Posted by
Copperhed51
Once again, I echo the people saying the CA made the right decision, but think it's a little sad that hand flying an RJ would be that big of a deal. However, I do it all day every day with no AP, no FD, no FMS, down to the nuts, in the mountains, in the ice, etc. When I was furloughed from the RJ job and went to the turboprop job and heard there was no AP/FD/FMS, I nearly pooped myself and figured it was going to be impossible. Turns out it wasn't that difficult, but if I hadn't done it in years, I'd probably be pretty hesitant as well. Not once when I flew the RJ did I do anything other than get vectored onto an ILS when conditions were IMC. In the turboprop, it's pretty much 50/50 whether the airport we're at even has an ILS and if it does, vectors are often times not an option or we'll just use the arc or procedure turn to save a little time. Just because the guy wasn't comfortable doing it doesn't make him a bad pilot, and if the AP's failed in flight, I have no doubt he could have handled the situation even with extremely bad weather. How could you possibly know if you're proficient at hand flying an entire flight if you haven't done it in years? I guess maybe one of the lessons here is that you should hand fly the airplane in different situations occasionally just to remind yourself how you and the aircraft perform.
How 'bout this. The highest level of safety at all times. That's what our passengers expect. Granted, some of the Jerry Springer crowd are ready to roll the dice for the $29 ticket, but in the end, we all want to go home and see our families.
The Captain determined that based on the information in hand, whether it was the destination wx, the mx situation of the aircraft, the current and expected rest condition of the crew...or any combination of the above...it doesn't matter. That day, that night, that airplane, that crew, that set of circumstances, the Captain decided that in the interest of safety it was better to either have the autopilot operational or cancel the flight.
End of story.
It doesn't matter how good you are at hand flying the airplane to minimums. No one cares about your analysis of the handling qualities of the CRJ 200.
The Captain decided that in the interest of safety, it would be prudent to have the AP fixed.
That's it.
Unless you are a bean counter, there is no reason to question the decision.
I think we have all seen the result of situations in which the pilots have been "pushed" into similar situations. I would agree that there is a "get'er done" attitude in the pilot ranks, but to what end?
This board is a great resource for aviation information, but the second guessing of Captain's authority is detrimental to our profession.
Hog