So, someday soon, whenever the automatics are off, one must declare an emergency...perhaps even be escorted by air force fighters?
Bravo to all of you who ''keep your hand in". My process was to hand fly to cruise...trim up and then engage the autopilot...the test was if the autopilot had to retrim!
Also hand flew the descent from TOD to touchdown. Mind you, hand flying for hours in level flight can be fatiguing (God Bless you Charles Lindbergh)but my ''runs'' were all of the up and down along the ''shuttle'' routes of the US East coast.
I never cared for the flight director, but as required by regulation for approaches and takeoff (for cues for engine out pitch)...but I always felt that turning it off would be just fine.
And quite frankly, I don't feel the airbus is ever flown by hand...even with the sidestick.