Originally Posted by wasbones
MTOW: I cannot recall the number of times I've had requests from pilots that you would think they could see are unavailable (potential RA resulting) due very close proximity traffic. Makes me wonder how much TCAS is used enroute for situational awareness.
Some TCAS units provide a pretty limited display. All of ours have a max display range of 12NM for instance. If there is something further out than 12NM we won't see it.
What surprises me is the number of times I hear pilots cleared to non-standard levels. I thought that was to be for operational requirements only after the Darwin incident, yet recently I was offered a non-standard level by ATC after being told that the standard level I'd asked for was not available.