wheelsup
Well-Known Member
I wonder if the guys who landed on the taxiway in ATL were using automation or hand flying? I'd hazard a bet that if the autopilot was on and tracking a LOC, they'd be no mistake about what was a runway or taxiway. That was an event that could've turned out a lot differently.So your argument is that the way to prevent automation-related mistakes is to become even more rusty on the use of the automation? Yeah, that's brilliant.
I'd like to force you hand flying fetishists to fly an entire month with nothing but automation except for the first few hundred feet on departure and the last few hundred on approach. Perhaps you'd finally learn how it works instead of clicking it all off as a crutch.
Same goes for the SWA off airport landing. I wonder if they used automation or just "clicked it off" when they saw "the airport". I'm guessing the did the latter, but just a hunch.
Using automation allows you to delegate the menial task of manipulating the controls to focus more on the big picture stuff, like looking outside and on the moving map. I'd rather be focused on *where* I was landing over how sweet and smooth I am on the controls.