I have been reading something on AOPA online that may relate to what the PF on AF447 experienced.
AOPA Online: Technique: The 'Panic Pull'
The main goal of unusual-attitude training is breaking the deeply ingrained and nearly universal “panic pull” reflex that causes pilots to haul back on the stick or yoke when bank angles exceed their comfort levels.
A multiyear study by Aviation Performance Solutions LLC (APS), an Arizona firm that offers a range of upset recovery courses, found that the pull reflex is especially strong—and particularly perilous—at low altitudes, and it afflicts new pilots as well as seasoned pros.
“An alarming 90 percent of pilots without previous upset recovery experience ‘pull’ when faced with an overbank situation beyond 90 degrees,” according to an APS report. “A full nine out of 10 pilots, regardless of experience level, will most likely pull into the ground in a wake-turbulence upset or cross-controlled stall when faced with the situation for the first time.”
I would expect any pilot who has never flown a slow roll might easily succumb to this reflex. (Not referring to barrel rolls here.)
It might not take a very extreme roll on a black and turbulent night to trigger the pull reflex in an already surprised and anxious pilot.
I don't expect everyone to embrace this concept immediately. Just an idea to kick around.
