Originally Posted by
Vokes55
Sorry but once again, who are you to say that somebody who did an MPL or integrated course can’t fly a complicated SID raw data? These baseless assumptions and tarring of nearly a whole generation of pilots is the bit I have an issue with.
I’m more than capable of hand flying an eastbound SID off 25 at Luton using raw data. Do I think it’s appropriate? No. Can I be bothered when it’s day 6 of earlies and I’ve had 4 hours of sleep? No. Do the people that pay my wages care that I didn’t hand fly that SID? No. Do the passengers that keep me in a job care? No. Does it have anything to do with whether I did an MPL course, an integrated course or 4000 hours crop spraying in Australia? No.
Most companies would want a pilot who knows when it is and isn’t appropriate to hand fly such a departure. And for most companies, the answer of when it’s appropriate would be “in the sim” and the answer of when it’s not would be “any other time”. As I said before, the appropriate use of automation is a matter of company policy for most airlines and is nothing to do with how somebody completed their initial training. The majority of us just want to have a good day out, keep a roof over our heads and food on the table and get our kicks elsewhere.
I have no problem with people with a military background, as long as you can leave your ego at the door and understand that it doesn’t say USAF on the side of your aircraft any more. Your war stories are as interesting (and relevant) to me as my golf stories are to you.
I agree with the realism in your argument. Being a pilot is like any another profession. Only Passion alone doesn't necessarily make one better. There are many who play sport very passionately and yet remain mediocre at best. Commercial flying is a business to make money by transporting people safely. When it stops doing that even the best pilot goes home. These are not exactly training flights and to have an incident/accident practicing something fancy because one's passion is simply not acceptable. Most flights should use automation that's what it's designed for and gives consistent results. Hand flying should be used to keep the capability to do so when required. That doesn't require every departure or every arrival to be manually flown. This is not a personal toy and airline must have policies in this regard.