Verbalize
Verify
Monitor
Verbalize what you’re going to do.
Verify that it gets done.
Monitor the result.
One of the biggest problems with newer aircraft is that they’re so smart you can be lulled into a state of complacency or false security. “Children of the magenta line” is the derogatory term used for those pilots who grew up with automation and have barely “flown-flown” aircraft, let alone aircraft without any automation.
It used to be that flying without any automation was normal and that as you progressed up the industry ladder, the aircraft became more automated and you enjoyed the relief.
Today, new pilots learn to fly (fully) automated aircraft that have programming requirements and the knowledge of how to takeoff and land. For those pilots, automation has been the norm, and any step down in automation borders on an emergency.
Indeed, there is currently a big push in aviation for pilots to be more proficient hand-flyers whenever possible and to save the full-up automation for when it’s needed.
This ensures proficiency and currency, while allowing each pilot to emphasize the skills they’re supposed to be using on the Flight Deck: Pilot Flying and Pilot Monitoring.
Lastly, there is a new initiative called FLIGHT PATH FIRST, which is designed to make certain both pilots are focused PRIMARILY on the fact that the aircraft is going exactly WHERE you want it to go HOW you want it to get there.
That might sound basic, but modern aircraft have multiple different modes of flight and ensuring the aircraft is doing what you want, in the mode you want, is not as straightforward as one might think, especially when turning automation on and off.
For instance, as an automated aircraft reaches its cruising altitude, it switches from CLIMB to CRUISE mode, then DESCENT as you approach your destination. They’re completely different and programmed differently.
e.g. If I was climbing without automation (hand-flying) the aircraft would be in one mode (basically manual mode, with the pilot determining speed & altitude), but if I reached 25,000 feet while climbing to 30,000 feet, and hit “AUTOPILOT” to take me the rest of the way, it might be pre-programmed at a different speed than I was flying. That then automatically pushes the nose down (to get faster) or pulls it up (to climb at a slower speed, if I was already at CLIMB thrust).
Conversely, you could have been asked by ATC to climb at 2,000 feet per minute or greater to avoid other traffic. When you hit VERTICAL SPEED and dial in 2000fpm, your speed can dramatically drop off, because you were climbing at CLIMB thrust using the VNAV (automated prompts) as your guide.
In short, it’s a very dynamic environment and one ATC request or one pilot’s choice of flight mode can change those dynamics in ways you may not have wanted or expected, requiring constant adjustment and/or correction.
The goal of a good flight crew is to make all of those machinations that are going on behind the scenes feel seamless to you and to never happen without both (all 3 or 4?) pilots understanding EXACTLY what the Pilot Flying is asking the aircraft to do (Verbalize & Verify) and then making sure it is doing it as intended (Monitor).
All of that is merely to say it becomes MUCH easier to just turn the automation on at a low altitude (the 787 autopilot can be turned on at 200 feet above the ground) and, if you so choose, not turn it off until after conducting an automated landing!
BUT, that “easier” causes skills decay and muscle memory atrophy, not to mention a level of complacency that must be overcome when the automation might not be available due to a malfunction…which is why I usually hand fly up yo 18,000’ and down from about 10,000’ depending on the arrival. Some places, like São Paulo do so much controlling of aircraft, it’s often easier to hand fly the descent than constantly be changing flight modes, while Heathrow has a thing called a Constant Descent Angle arrival that’s much easier to accomplish with automation.
What was the question, again???
(Apologies to those that lost interest and didn’t get this far to read the apology!!)
