OC;
I would suggest though that some form of manual flying skill is essential and to be expected - for any pilot.
Some observations, for what it's worth...
I couldnt' get a single F/O to hand-fly the A320 or the A340/A330 when I offered (and in some cases
asked them to fly). Primarily they were afraid of the thrust levers, (disconnecting them, controlling thrust etc) but for whatever other reason they just didn't want to actually hand-fly. I always thought flying a visual was both challenging and about all we have left to us to practise that part of our craft that was being discouraged, but I was told by my F/Os that a lot of captains refused the request to hand-fly because they themselves were uncomfortable disconnecting and it increased the workload on the PM. The PM set all the autoflight windows...the headings/altitudes and programmed the FMC when needed (which was heads-down of course), and kept a watch (there was usually a third pilot, an RP, in the cockpit...hand-flying was discouraged by the company except in low traffic density airports...
yeah, right...low density international destinations) and when there was an "event" associated with hand-flying, they tightened the rules even more. We used to do it all the time on the DC8's/9's B727's, Lockheeds even the B767's but airlines want the automation used and now navigation procedures (RNP, STARS, SIDS) make autoflight necessary. The loss of skills, both handling and thinking, is a vicious circle process.
Now before we assume too much in this, the actual hand-flying the airplane isn't much of a challenge...trim is done for you, thrust is automatic and the autopilot is (depending upon the "hands"), smoother. In fact while hand-flying isn't much of a pilot's challenge, its more of an interesting challenge to make the autoflight work well. What's lost is the thinking skills when you have your hands on the controls....
it's different than programming and flying through the Mode Control Panel; You're "connected" to the airplane.
I always felt I had good reason to trust the guys up front when I went back for the break. Still, as a rule I didn't go back went during the ITCZ crossing, "just because". It wasn't because of the hand-flying issue...to be blunt, I just didn't know what kind of radar skills everyone had.
At the time, I'd never heard of such a thing as "UAS" and losing the airspeed data at altitude, (1999 - 2007 on the 340/330). It was just never discussed or demonstrated.
I don't know what the answer is. Automation has become necessary, not just nice to have. But handling skills (which form thinking skills and a proper scan in my books) need to be re-introduced, taught and reinforced with practise. It wasn't in the script, but I can recall one sim in particular where the check captain made us do climbing then descending S-turns while changing speed. Every skill was practised...including the instrument scan.