Hundredpercent
You nailed it ! This is exactly what it is along with a twist of over confidence.
I'm sorry but 2 F/O's at the front, even if qualified ( WTF does it mean anyway ? ) is not the same as a skipper and a F/O.
When the captain is on the flight deck, there a clear chain of command. There is also at least 15 years difference of dealing with crappy flight conditions and I'm sorry, like it or not, that makes a hell of a difference.
It's become a very touchy issue where F/O feel insulted whenever they're told they are not as " good " as the old man in the left hand seat.
Again, it has nothing to do with " good " or " bad". Commnanding a flight is a job that one learns and creams with experience. A sprinkle of humility sweets it nicely too.
What some airlines need to do is to acknowledge there is a gap that needs to be filled and very pronto.
Lufthansa has a Senior First Officer training syllabus where emphasis is put on leadership and left hand seat handling of the aircraft in emergency situations. The roles are very clear when the Captain is in the bunk.
Others have second first officer which is another way of clearly stating who does what under who's authority.
So to say that 2 fully qualified pilots are the same is just ludicrous.
If the debate remains an egotic one, I'm afraid we're not going to very far and to finish : Yes !!! I think the Captain has to arrange his breake so as to be in his seat for the tricky part of the flight and as to 447 I am damn sure the outcome would have been very different had the Captian been on the flight deck for the reason Onehundredpercent so elloquently explained.