When we all learned instruments, our instructors (or at least my instructor) always told us to keep the "next two things" in mind. I remember practicing nonprecision approaches and always being asked "what now, and what next?" over and over again. He'd pull the chart out off my yoke clip and expect a response like "7 miles to go to the VOR, out of 3100 descending to 2200, level then configure at 2 DME, then next altitude 1400 next course 274, right crosswind". Always know the next two things that are going to happen. This is your PRIMARY situational awareness tool; extraneous avionics are SECONDARY to it, ALWAYS.
As we get into larger, better equipped aircraft with glass, FMS, GPS, moving maps, VNAV, etc and fly longer routes with less-frequent landings, we naturally start to lean on the automation to tell us these "next two things". Initial and recurrent training in the airline world assumes tacitly that professional pilots do not need to be taught these basic airmanship skills; you are EXPECTED to bring that to the plate with you from jumpstreet, day 1. This is as it should be. However, over the years the natural encroachment of automation dependency (or shall I say unconscious automation laziness..?) that most of us at least occasionally experience will erode those sharp thinking processes. THAT is the thing that in my humble opinion is NOT adequately addressed in most training. Maintenance of those truly fundamental skills of airmanship which can all too easily be overlooked by the fact that the purple line very rarely fails during a simulator check.
A flight director, autopilot, etc is a CONVENIENCE item, fundamentally. It increases safety when it 1. reduces fatigue and 2. is FULLY under the pilot's control, allowing an increased sense of situational awareness by attending to the basic task of flying while allowing the pilot to monitor a more relaxed "big picture". If it fails to do either one of those things, it becomes a liability and should be instinctually and instantly disregarded. By always maintaining that same thought pattern of the "next two things", monitoring the raw data underneath the automation, this instinctive "step down" to basics is a complete nonissue. We must simply ALWAYS, proactively keep our mind engaged with the airplane, whether flying with hands on the yoke or with the autoflight system.
It's been a long time since I've been anywhere near a Dash, but as a former TRI and captain on 3 out of 4 models of the Crash-8 for a few thousand hours on type I can tell you that these basics hold as true for that aircraft as a 172, as well as for the jet types I've had the pleasure of enjoying subsequently. The hypnotic effect of automation complacency is equally destructive to basic airmanship and situational awareness in all of the above, as well.
"But for the grace of God, there go I". This kind of incident could happen to ANY of us in a moment of unaware fixation. Anyone who disagrees with that statement is either wrong, or truly much smarter than myself and 90% of the people I have flown with in any capacity in my entire career. Fly safe and remember the "next two things".
Last edited by hikoushi; 23rd Jun 2012 at 10:02.