Peter
I for one realise that GPS is probably one of the biggest if not the biggest advancement in navigation this century so what Are my concerns.
It worries me somewhat when pilots become too dependent on technology to cover gaps in their own flying skills.
We had a longish thread on the Cirrus shute system and relying on the chute technology to cover pilots inabilities to make a successful forced landing in the event of engine failure.
The same aircraft has a panic button to recover the aircraft automatically if the pilot looses control.
We now have GPS and all manner of terrain depiction.
All these things are good as a compliment to strong piloting skills and procedures but not so if a pilot is relying on automated systems to counter a lack of skills.
What worried me with the chute is that pilots could be drawn into out of their depth situations through confidence of having the chute.
The same goes with advanced GPS systems.
I do know of pilots in such machines who no longer take or look at charts or even flight plan. Its just punch in and blindly go.
Do these excellent safety advancements add to piloting skills NO NO NO! They encourage pilots to loose those skills by over reliance on the systems as well as becoming shoddy in their airmanship.
As with the chute treated with respect and as an extra tool to the other tools available to them then these new advancements become truly safety advancements.
I have seen pilots here advocate flying on top by saying to just punch in the autopilot to climb through cloud. Great if you have the skills to handle anything thrown at you in cloud! not so great if you do not and the autopilot fails. Take my word for it i have had numerous autopilot failures of one kind or another.
Abused to the extent of getting lazy with basic flying skills or used to cover up deficiences in those skills and the pilot is enroute to waypoint called trouble.
Pace
Last edited by Pace; 2nd July 2012 at 20:19.