At every SIM we always have to do an EFATO, a OEI ILS to a go-around and a OEI NPA to land.
In the light of recent accidents, I think that two other mandatory elements should be added to every SIM from now on:
1. Unusual attitude recovery.
2. Primary instrument failure, identification and recovery.
Pilots should of course be able to fly manually. (I have flown Southampton to Prague with no autopilot - and it is possible, but very tiring, keeping to +/- 200' for 2 and a half hours). However, there is no getting away from the fact that skills become rusty if not used. In addition, some situations such as AF447 have never been seen by most pilots. (see my post #1119 in the AF447 number 12 thread).
It is all very well writing words on a page in the FCOM/FCTM about how to deal with a problem, but another prospect entirely to recognise and deal with a possibly complex, confusing problem, with no external cues, no previous practice and no warning.
If you showed a concert violinist a piece of Stephane Grapelli music, (jazz violin), and let them read it as much as they wanted, but did not allow them to play or practice it even once; how would it sound the first time they were asked to actually play it? Perfect, or awkward and stilting? Being different from the concert music they were used to, they might not initially be able to play it at all.
In reality of course, the concert violinist would practice the music on their violin over and over again at home before performing it, but we cannot take our airplane home, or use the SIM to practice, and yet we are expected to be able to recognise and react correctly to every possible situation, even if we have never experienced it at all.