If I tell you the first aeroplane I operated as an FE was a derivative of the Comet you will know that I'm pretty familiar with steam driven systems.
It's not a case of needing automation. It's about benefiting from it. Does your car have anti lock brakes? If so you will know that stamping on the peddle and letting the ABS modulate the brake pressure is a lot easier and accurate than trying to do cadence braking manually.