Originally Posted by gettinbumped

Wow. I am always shocked at how clear it is that we are our own worst enemy.

Someone asked what the opinion of a mainline guy was...

I would refuse an aircraft without an autopilot in the situation listed in the initial post.

It's not a question of whether I COULD fly it. I spent years flying commuter turboprops with no autopilot. The question comes down to the wording used by the FAA in the recent revocation letter to the NWA pilots in the MSP incident. Would I be conducting the flight at the highest level of safety? To me, this would be a big fat no. I don't need to be anyones hero and show off my flying skills. I quit worrying about that 10,000 hours or so ago. I need to be able to make sure that I can get my crew and passengers from Point A to Point B safely, and defend my decisions if something goes wrong.

What's worrying about this post to me, is that there are pilots on this board that are defending the stupid, illegal, and dangerous practice of Pilot Pushing. This should be an easy case for ALPA, but this type of behavior at ANY airline is despicable. Refusing an aircraft for a major system being inoperative if he feels he/she feels the HIGHEST level of safety can't be maintained isn't his/her right.... its his/her responsibility. We ought to be all standing behind this pilot, shoulder to shoulder, against Pilot Pushing at ANY level. If you want to be a hero in the air, apply to be a test pilot or an astronaut.

By the way, I now begin ANY conversation with my management with "I want to inform you that I am recording this conversation". This pilot was the PIC, and he/she was the one who was required by law to make the decision whether they were meeting the standard set forth in writing by the FAA. NOT management. And CERTAINLY not an arm chair quarterback on this forum.

Rant over.