Have FBW a/c become too complicated for their own good? There is much talk about the pilot being detached from the a/c in modern automation, and hence the concern about automation dependancy. This discussion has focused on improving manual skills to counter this. In these latest threads it seems the detachment from the a/c could be because of over complication about what it is going to do and when. Surely it is 'too much' to have a pilot in a non-normal situation, with all the associated stresses, where the pilot is unsure of what flight control system will do what and with what limitations. Surely, in a non-normal scenario things should be as simple and as basic as possible.
I admit I am not an AB pilot. I apologise if I've missed something, but there does seem an unresolved debate amongst the AB crews about what is correct in these various scenarios.
Is that healthy, or have the design engineers, inadvertently, squeezed the pilot out of the loop at a time when they need to be 'on top of it all'? If that is true, my concern is it will get worse before it gets better. What is on the drawing board now that we, the pilots, have no idea about? I'm not sure manufacturer's test pilots are the best to judge what is the best design for the average line pilot.