Whilst the AH is our primary inst we mustn't forget the VSI, I believe one of the most important of the six pack.
Agree. The basic six pack of flight instruments was easy to assimulate especially as the artificial horizon was relatively large and the "little aeroplane" was quite big. Current EFIS has an AH that looks nothing like an aeroplane and the triangular image is shaped so the inverted V of a flight director can fit snugly when commands are satisfied. Add to that a tiny IVSI needle which belies its importance and the plethora of information that borders the whole display, can be quite overwhelming.
One US airline asked Boeing to design a basic six pack EFIS display with round dials without all the goodies surrounding it in the belief it helped the pilot maintain scan currency. Blind reliance on flight director commands has been the cause of many crashes over the years. In the case of the Kingair Wandai accident it was not known if the pilot was following FD commands or even if the FD was switched on and in view.
There is evidence that some pilots become addicted to following the flight director to the extent they even leave it in view when not being used. This can be distracting but addicted pilots accept that. The Boeing 737 FCTM states that if the flight director commands are not to be followed, the flight director should be switched off. That is sound advice for most aircraft.