As much as I hate to think about it, airline pilots are now 95% systems operator 5% hands on pilot. And this is how the public and management view the position
The public view it that way because, after a number of very public battles over T & C's, the management have convinced them that is the case.
And the management view it that way because the two major manufacturers have convinced them that that is the case, in their never ending quest to sell aircraft & to out sell each other.
That doesn't make the perception accurate. And it sure doesn't enhance safety. I spend a fair proportion of my working day or night dealing with problems created by some of the new technology that was supposed to make my life easier or make me redundant. Sure I don't physically handle the controls as much as in years gone by, but I do spend a lot of time managing the flight. There is a lot more to piloting than just manipulating the controls. That is not a new phenomenon - it has
always been that way. And flight management in
all phases of normal & non-normal flight is something a computer, or a systems operator, is notoriously bad at.
the risk analysts have decided that its an acceptable risk to see what the systems operators can do in that situation.
A number of recent accidents have shown exactly what the systems operators do in 'that' situation. That is why the FAA & others are starting to pay some attention to the matter.
And I am starting to get fed up with risk analysts, along with the many others, who feel that it is acceptable to 'play the stats' with my life & the lives of my family & friends when they chose to travel by air.
The reasonable & acceptable risk everyone takes when they walk out the door each day to participate in life, is fast becoming unreasonable & unacceptable when it comes to air travel.