Ref Circle-to-land (hopefully
)
The procedure used by our biggest lo-co involves the PF flying the aircraft by autopilot with the PNF carrying out various checklist items/monitoring timing etc.
The workload involved leaves precious little time for heads-up, and indeed as has been pointed out, in the Sim there is not much to see if the vis has been set to the minimum for the procedure.
I have the impression that the whole circle part is nowadays treated as an "instrument approach" directed via the MCP and that you are only being expected to search for visual cues/contact during the turn from base to final.
The positive aspect of this is that more accurate patterns are possibly being achieved, the negative is that what is supposed to be a visual segment keeping the R/W in view which "should" be aborted if R/W contact is lost, IMHO is not being taught nor flown on the line as thus.
Even more alarmingly some of the new generation of Capt's (
) nurtured for several years of doing it this way, are hopelessly unable to fly a basic visual approach a la Cessna 150. The implications for this on a dark dirty night with the automatics misbehaving are only too obvious.
Still, as long as you can regurgetate that double-brief it will all be fine . . . . . right ? ?
