Climb technique: it has been mentioned here that using v/s modes to climb is unsafe; I disagree. Especially at higher altitudes, turbulence and temp variations during climb, using airspeed/mach with autopilot, can result in large variations in pitch, as airspeed fluctuates and the autopilot pitches up and down to catch up; autopilot lag can result in ever increasing pitch variations, making the climb uncomfortable and erratic. Climb in v/s used to be quite standard; adjust the v/s to maintain an airspeed/mach, which can be much smoother, as small variations can be averaged out. The problem is inattention; setting 500 feet/min and forgetting about it, is as silly as setting 290 airspeed up to 410. A minimum, at least, of attention is required in all cases. V/S is just as safe, with proper attention, as any other mode; it DOES require a little care, but then this IS aviation.
BTW, Mr. Don Phillips is a great writer, on railways as well as aviation.