Originally Posted by
Tomaski
Nowadays the answer is more likely to be, "Because that is how the procedure is written!" I suspect in some training environments, that last answer is deemed sufficient and thus further investigation is discouraged.
Difficult because of the authority gradient between instructor and trainee I know, but at this point a good student should ask “Yes, but what if .........?”, especially if they are armed with the knowledge that manufacturers and regulators have accepted for decades that you can’t write a procedure for everything.
A pilot with good flying skills and excellent systems knowledge will have something to do (options) right down to a smoking hole in the ground whereas a ‘procedure-only’ trained pilot could ultimately reach a point when they simply don’t know what to do anymore and with no one to tell them if paired with a similarly trained pilot.
Sadly in some cases, this will be in largely serviceable aircraft where a safe outcome is possible.