You would think that the airlines would try and hire the most experienced pilots available. The answer is not so. Beancounters rule.
If you look at the recruitment at major low cost airlines they take very inerperienced pilots who can just barely handfly, but can operate the automation. These pilots get upgraded to Captain/training positions.
This has resulted in a generation of captains who write the manuals/sops that encourage the use of automation and ban handflying.
I know of many unemployed pilots age 50 and older with 10000+hrs unable to get a job due to the cost cutting of many airlines.
Hiring these pilots would cut down the handling type of accident. Most have flown in aircraft not as reliable as the modern jets and have superior handling skills and most important are not complacent.
Automatic flight controls are great when working but a killer when they malfunction. It could be said that some autoflight systems are far too complicated in relation to failure modes,some of which are not even known about until an incident/crash.
Crews must be able to disconnect everything and handfly just like the days of the DC-3. Hand flying is a skill learned through practise not by watching the autopilot.