Quote:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97UnW-A4FRM
This level of ability is the norm. Think of all the barely capable, Florida trained pilots out there operating 777s and 320s all over the world under "use the autopilot all the time at all cost" procedures. Beyond the ability to get the airplane onto the runway and turn off safely, I'm not sure management groups really care how great of a pilot one might be. The goal is to automate us out of the cockpit as much and as quickly as possible, both with strict procedures and technology.Originally Posted by 121isnofun
While many of you have seen this, for those that haven't take a moment and have a look. While many of the comments praise the crew, you and I know that this was nothing resembling textbook. Not even in the ball park. Not meant to beat up the Republic guys or any regional guys (175 with AA paint on the tail) but for all the "we deserve more" chest-beating, we ought to bring more to the table than what this vid shows. And as more senior guys head to the majors thus driving overall experience down at the regionals, I'm afraid this level of ability will become the norm.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97UnW-A4FRM
The other day we were asked to make a "short approach" in the 900. I clicked off the autopilot/FD and made the approach. There aren't many places left in the world where ATC would ask a jet airliner to do something like that. It felt good to be capable of making that approach, but I wonder if that ability has any value beyond a personal sense of accomplishment.
I think about this quite a bit and have considered whether I want to continue working in a job that will someday be reduced to the equivalent of the button pusher at the front of a subway car. There's a good Vanity Fair article on the subject here - Should Airplanes Be Flying Themselves? | Vanity Fair
This quote really got me:
It is natural that some pilots object [to automation]. This appears to be primarily a cultural and generational matter. In China, for instance, the crews don’t care. In fact, they like their automation and rely on it willingly. By contrast, an Airbus man told me about an encounter between a British pilot and his superior at a Middle Eastern airline, in which the pilot complained that automation had taken the fun out of life, and the superior answered, to paraphrase, “Hey *******, if you want to have fun, go sail a boat. You fly with automation or find some other job.”
So, excepting pilots, does anyone really care if this was a semi-questionable crosswind landing? I'm not sure.