"
Got a few hits"......most of them along the lines of "My d1ck's bigger than your's."
Still who am
I to judge..."Let him without sin cast the first stone", and that "him" sure as hell ain't me.
However, the action of this
ONE QANTAS pilot - in addition to being unprofessional - has now added more fuel to the fire, for those who see QF pilots as self-appointed "Sky Gods" (to quote an earlier contributor).
Could it be, that as the QF captain who reported the DJ guy was "
Shorthaul. Definately, shorthaul." (to quote
Buster), he is still carrying baggage from 14 years ago? His type were divisive in Australian aviation then, and it appears STILL are today.
In answer to your last question, wrt autoland,
Buster, the main restrictions on autoland-capable aircraft are the accuracy and reliability of the ground equipment (localiser and glide slope integrity), and a requirement for the aircraft to have demonstrated its proficiency to make a successful autoland within the last (usually) one month. There are also decreased x-wind and tailwind limitations ie. the maximum wind values are less than normal.
There is crew training involved, but as you can imagine, the emphasis is on monitoring the autopilot and autothrottle. Passive failure(s), or a sudden dynamic failure near to the ground requiring immediate manual intervention.
As I said earlier, autolands allow (qualified) crew to make an approach and landing under zero visibility conditions (Cat 3C) at certain approved airports.