Hi Triskel
Would it be more reasonable to lock in the autopilot whenever one of the pilots leaves his seat? My lawn tractor has a pressure switch in the seat which turns off the engine when vacated - a similar switch in pilots' seats could lock into A/P (maintaining current settings) whenever either seat is vacated - of course pilots would have to choose when to leave i.e. no likely imminent change of course/altitude, but I guess most do anyway?
I'm afraid that solution is about as sensible as mandating that when one pilot leaves the cockpit, the other must do so also
Frequently when I leave the Flt Deck, my colleague is required to speak to ATC, alter heading, navigation and FL - and primarily of course, be ready and able to react to any abnormal situation appropriately. And this is a flaw in the "2 in cockpit rule" - prior GW their role could be seen as in case of incapacitation and/or door operative. Post GW, unless and until it is clearly stated, people (including Cabin Crew) will see the role to "monitor" the remaining pilot, and be consulted over such actions.
Hence whilst I am not necessarily against a "2 in cockpit" rule, with it's implementation the role of said person needs to be very clearly laid out. You only have to read the last X million posts on this thread to see that role has been given many different purposes.
Prior to a pilot under training being assessed as competent to handle the above tasks
by themselves, a 3rd (Safety) pilot is carried. What some posters above seem to be advocating with the "2 in cockpit" rule is removing that ability from all pilots - if that is the case, then the rule needs to be "2 pilots in the cockpit at all time", which effectively equates to 3 Flt Crew aircraft. Fine by me
