A US airline with highly-experienced pilots almost hit a small mountain on departure from SFO years ago. This was in a 747-400. Even the senior FO who held the right seat faced engine instruments which vibrated due to an engine problem and maybe even the black "ball" was difficult to read. The yoke was turned, but nobody pushed on a rudder until it was almost too late.
After IOE flying, where the FO or Captain flies almost each leg, how many SIDs and instrument approaches will the new FO fly each month or year?
United experienced unique problems years ago due to a "culturally-correct" hiring policy. That very young Flight Engineer is now your new B-737 FO, and STILL has a total of about 250 hours, much of it in single-engine Cessna 172s. No sweat man, most of it is cross-country! Sure, the autothrottles and anti-skid are on MEL. But this is still November...we can hack it.
Sure, the legal and/or corporate quotas were filled (during the Hillary Dynasty
), and a court-mandated policy was complied with, but after that things were not always so rosy. How about into a hazardous mountain airport when an electrical problem happens (bus tie etc), or an oil pressure annunc. light goes on? "Did he say that the braking action was reported by a turboprop?" (!)
Some jet pilots might see no problem with this, but they can certainly 'type' much faster on the FMC buttons than the old f@&t in the left seat and be able to quickly reset the MCP.
Many FOs with over 20 years of flying in transport-category aircraft (it was the case that on short trans-Pacific trips the two Captains flew most approaches...), in order to maintain currency, must return to the simulator each six months.
How would these younger pilots make the transition to, for example, A-320 or B-737 Captain and fly four-five legs near mountains and around weather in a 12-hour duty period? "Let's see, 20 minutes of contingency fuel with t'storms forecast here and near the destination...well...but Dispatch says that we need to leave on schedule. I guess we don't need a dep. or dest. alternate airport...that would cause a delay! The agent needs to close the cabin door? Eh.. ok. Preflight checklist please!" You are gone flying another trip, but your wife and son are sipping their Mountain Dew soft drinks in back, behind these very low-experience guys {and how little experience might HIS brand-new First Officer have?}. Your wife and son are in a plane which is now number 1 for departure, enjoying the view of pretty lightning bolts from very big clouds near the airport, as the tree limbs swing back and forth. FO-"the winds are still within our 38 knot crosswind limit"
