thanks for the clarification on that everyone...I will have to dig some on the citation x tech info

Your friends are probably getting confused with the requirement to have operable DME equipment above FL240.
Autopilots are required in RVSM airspace between FL290 and FL410, but not above or below.

PHEW!!! Thanks for the clarification, Josh!! I was wondering why the fed on board my flight the other day wasn't screaming at me, until I read your post! :D

Why are you hand flying into the FL's with a fed on board? You should have George on so you can free up brain bytes as an extra measure to stay out of trouble. Maybe it's just me, but if I was your Capt that's what I'd expect you to do.

We were dodging weather in the climb and at the rate Jorge moves, it was just easier to hand fly. I told the CA and the Fed, and they both agreed it was a good idea. It was nice above FL200, so I thought "What the heck, I'll take it up to 2000' short of cruise and let Jorge handle the level off." They didn't seem to mind, and stared debating the age 65 deal...

Worked fine, no fatalities! :D

There is no "hand flying" limitation on the X autopilot....perhaps it is in someone's ops specs. It hand flies just fine at .92/FL410+

awesome thanks for the info ! i was pretty sure it could ...guess it must be a rule or sop at someplaces

I like your avatar, NJA Capt! Does the X have the same crap Honeywell system the ERJ has? Please tell me they went with the IC-1000s instead of the -600s!

From AC 61-107A

It's very interesting reading the discussion on hand flying on here.

I just talked to an instructor in my glider-club who flies for Lufthansa CityLine as a captain and is also a chief-pilot (I think) on the Canadair Fleet - definatly at least a training captain. I told him that I had spoken to pilots from the US and read on here that they would usually hand fly up until at least 10,000 feet or more. He immedeatly said that he as a captain would not allow a F/O to do so! He said, on rare occasions, OK, but not as a habbit... He said that company procedures where Autopilot ON at 600feet. I asked him why and asked if the hand flying skills didn't get lost. He said that you needed your absolute concentration for radio calls, freq. changes, traffic and monitoring the instruments. He said the "pilot not flying" would have WAY too much work if the PF hand flew the aircraft. Hand flying skills were trained on rare occasions that the do an entire flight "raw data" with a training captain for example.

I have to say, I don't really think he was right - especially how harsch he was! He said that every pilot saying he would always hand fly up to 10,000feet was an idiot... (sorry guys, just quoting! Not my opinion anyway...:D;)) But what can I know - I mean, he is a highly experienced airline captain...

What are your thoughts? Would you say this is just a different mentality in Europe? He said, especially around places like Chicago you would have to look out for traffic and couldn't possibly be hand flying...

Whatever, I'd like to do it like you guys :p- one of the reasons I'm moving back to the States after school...

Best regards,
Jakob