I think there is little doubt the P2 should have been qualified and firmly strapped into the captain's seat. But still, nothing surprises me after years of experiencing things that go right through the scale of bad form to bewildering - and occasionally on to bizarre.
I've touched on a couple of examples on R&N over the years, but my thoughts of writing a book about it seem beset with one problem: no one would believe the half of it.
Sleep? One bloke used to ask for me if he was intending to drive home after the flights. Somewhere between T/O and TOC he'd be out cold. "Don't you land it!" He said, several times before the zzzzzzzzing started. Needles to say, as a sprog, I loved it.
That's the thing, isn't it? The blokes left with the aircraft must feel pretty good about their new-found responsibility.