New technologies, reason for accidents...?

[ExSimGuy]

Auto-thrust, auto brake, auto spoilers . . . . .

Background (for those who do not know me) - Built sims for Singer-Link (-Miles) and maintained sims for BA (VC-10, 707, 747 Classic, and 737-"just")

Scenario - Aircraft happily rolling down the ILS (maybe in A/P or maybe hand-flown) - passes 100ft (?) and auto knocked off, pilot continues landing, shutting the power as the aircraft flares and touches down, spoilers (manually) deployed and thrust levers lifted up into reverse and brakes applied.

Can somebody please tell me what was wrong with this story (minor details maybe as it was years ago for me)

Now it appears that almost everything above is carried out by The Computer (okay -lesson the Boeing, but still some of it). Is it hard to remember "flare, power off, spoilers, reverse, brakes" (sharing some of those with your colleague)? So why hand over the control of the aircraft to The Computer?

Not that I have any problem with the autopilot systems - flying an 8-hour leg across the Atlantic must have been pretty tiring and boring (hopefully) - but why do we now seem to be handing most, if not all of the authority to a machine? Especially those critical phases of the flight

I remember in the latter days of my airline career doing a "route-fam" in a BA 737 to Spain and back - on arriving at LGW asked the crew if they were going to approach on A/P and getting the answer "no, it's a lovely clear day and we probably need the practice" !! The PF (left seat) held those 2 yellow bars glued beautifully in the centre all the way down with no problem!

Why does it seem to me that the automation is taking over the aircraft, complicating its operation (?), and depriving the crews (?) of the everyday "stick and rudder" practice? (in some aircraft,even depriving them of the stick completely)

I know that commercial flying gets safer every decade, but are we not forgetting the valuable input from the well-trained professionals who inhabit "row -1"?

(post inspired by the recent TAM and other similar instances)