Wizofoz...ditto on your remarks...my question would be ,in what part of the world were the use of speed brakes considered a no no....I have flown jets for 20+yrs and have never had a underlying feeling that the use of S/Bs was considered poor mgt ....the only thing I can recall being considered a no no for this type of thing was/is ,the use of thrust reversers(airborne) on some models of the older DC-8,s ....I have sat in the jumpseat on one occassion and now understand why....but I believe this manuver is a last ditch effort to"bring the bitch down"....I, like you use the S/B,s as a tool,depending on the situation.....the chop and drop STARS sometimes give you no other option