Quote:
"My personal philosophy is that at least once a week or so, I switch the autopilot, autothrust and flight directors off and do a raw data approach to minimums".
I like your thinking, but as a relief qualified First Officer (although flying more regional these days), this is simply not practcal, as one may only get to fly one, or (if lucky) two approaches per month.
Therein lies the problem. With such lack of currency, our company recommends full use of the automatics, to free up extra capacity and situational awareness. When on the back of the clock and with a little fatigue thrown in for good measure, hand flying a raw data approach is simply unwise.
The dog chases it's tail effectively. Lack of currency = full use of automatics. Full use of automatics = lack of hand flying proficiency.
The days off are good though!