I was never a supporter of 2 pilot ops in Twotters in PNG because,
1/. The likelihood of proper 2 crew SOPs being implemented was always going to be problematic when none of the trainers had an airline background,
2/. When ****s are trumps in PNG you don't have time to discuss it
3/. A new FO taught to 'speak up' when 'uncomfortable' would go hoarse in PNG
4/. After several months of their 'concerns' being essentially ignored they would tend to just sit there and accept whatever happened next.
The accident record since the implementation of 2 crew ops seems to indicate no safety benefit has been realised.
Its all moot anyway - if SP command experience was to become a non negotiable Twotter command requirement you'd park most of the Twotters in PNG.
Sorry CC but I have to disagree.
A few years ago now I flew for a PNG company, starting with around 2500 hrs of single pilot time flown in oz. After a training regime that quite frankly would put most regional (and some jet) airlines in Australia to shame I was checked to the right seat of an Otter. After 9 or 10 months of learning on the job I earned a spot in the left.
1/. The likelihood of proper 2 crew SOPs being implemented was always going to be problematic when none of the trainers had an airline background,
We took the multi crew thing very seriously. The company was part of the Air Niugini cadetship program. We were trained by people with muli crew experience and occasionally flew the line with ex jet airline pilots.
2/. When ****s are trumps in PNG you don't have time to discuss it
Too true. We thoroughly briefed everything beforehand. The pm knew exactly what the PF was thinking right down to expected visual cues and terrain escape routes. The resulting cockpit environment at times was not unlike a close knit crew in a rally car. You may well scoff, but in all the low level flying in & out of valleys in marginal weather that we did I never felt uncomfortable. Nor did we ever mis-identify a valley, take a wrong turn, mis-judge rising terrain etc etc. You can imagine my surprise when moving on to a large airline back in oz. I found that 'proper' multi crew ostensibly consists of the PF flying & the PM operating the radios
em tasol.
3/. A new FO taught to 'speak up' when 'uncomfortable' would go hoarse in PNG.
A new FO would only be uncomfortable if they had no idea what was normal and what the other pilot was intending to do. That comes down to training & briefing.
4/. After several months of their 'concerns' being essentially ignored they would tend to just sit there and accept whatever happened next.
Just as this would not be considered acceptable where you work. In the company that I worked the multi crew thing was taken seriously, ignoring a crew members concerns would have resulted in swift and severe actions from a higher authority.
IMHO the argument for extensive single pilot time in PNG doesn't fly. It's a bit like arguing that a Boeing/Airbus command would be safer if given to pilots with single pilot jet time.