It seems to me that some have forgotton that this was a training flight. Seems a stupid statement, but bear with me.
The F/O in the right seat must have been very new to the operation. Safety pilots are usually only used for the first 6 - 8 sectors. Those who have trained will know just how high the workload is for a training captain in the very early stages. You are effectively doing both roles - PF & PNF. If the trainee is flying a sector, you have to perform the PNF functions and also do your best to follow everything the trainee is doing, comparing it to what you know should be happening & ensuring that things are staying on track. During a busy approach this can get to the stage of overload. Often things get missed while you are answering a radio call or running a checklist. If you have to correct something the trainee has done wrong, other developing issues can be missed as well. This situation will generally improve as the trainee gains experience.
That is why you have a safety F/O in the early stages. It is his/her role to monitor the basics & ensure that the operation stays safe. However, not all airlines train their F/O's for this role & I would say that some are not even suited for the role. It has been my experience that the role is often not taken as seriously as it should be by management & pilots alike. When things get busy, some safety F/O's can be drawn into what is going on at the time & forget to keep monitoring the basics. Also, on the 737, it can be difficult to adequately monitor the flight instruments from the jump seat. The Capt's PFD can be hard to see at times, particularly the left side where the ASI is displayed. The F/O's PFD is generally more visible, however it can be partially blocked by the control column & the F/O's body.
It's a judgement call, but sometimes it is better for a training captain to just take over when the workload becomes too high. Most are loathe to do it, as they don't want the trainee to have their confidence dented. They also want the trainee to gain experience.
Maybe that was the case here. The captain was getting overloaded with the situation & just missed the airspeed. The safety F/O may have been too involved with the situation & forgot to step back & monitor the basics. It happens.
Not having been able to sit behind these guys & objectively watch them operate, we don't really know if they were incompetent or were just caught out be they circumstances on the day. It is all just educated (or uneducated) guessing & speculation.
Last edited by Oakape; 12th Feb 2013 at 21:11.