FAA: Pilots should be capable of flying aircraft manually when needed

Any airline pilot that can't manually fly the airplane he's sitting in, shouldn't be flying at all!!

I flew with a captain who preferred to hand fly most of the time. That was with the routes he knew well. He was a yoke and pedal guy even with a glass cockpit. He would have made a great check airman, but he didn't want the head ache.

Doh! You think... Pilots really need to learn how to Fly Their Plane... It is amazing that this is a published Article! Sad that it is needed.

YA THINK? It's unnerving that this isn't a headline in the Onion.

Sounds silly to even say it, but remember the Asiana 214 crash at SFO in 2013? I recall that came down to the captain lacking the airmanship to land the aircraft manually. At the time it was said he might have been unable to fly a Cessna.

Surely aircrew need to be more than just system operators of largely automated machines that just happen to fly?

If you can't fly the aircraft manually, you official title should be layman passenger. Not pilot or PIC

OMG! PILOTS WILL HAVE TO KNOW HOW TO FLY AN AIRPLANE?! Oh, this is soooo unfair! I’m filing a grievance with my union right now!

This statement is scary just because they had to say it.

Aviate. Navigate. Communicate.

And this is a suggestion but not a requirement????????

I always said recurrent training should be done in a Cessna 150!

This is the type of action that makes the FAA so useful. The agency that is in charge and approves all training and licensing is NOW saying that pilots need to know how to fly. Good work FAA...
Advisory Circular No.1- Pilots should know how to fly the airplane
Please send this out immediatly.....

"Pilots should be capable of flying aircraft manually when needed" What???? Am I missing something here? If this is a factual statement I think I will drive.

Given the new electronic computer driven monitoring capacities built into millions of new cars and trucks, I wonder how long it will be until we start reading the same kinds of comments about folks becoming dependent on these automated systems as well. True, they won’t be 30,000 ft up, going hundreds of mph, carrying hundreds of others…but the sheer number of drivers will perhaps amount to an equivalent amount of trouble. Do we then blame the drivers themselves, the manufacturers, the politicians who take bribes (campaign contributions) from those making big bucks from the sales involved, the automakers unions? My mother, deceased in 2013, told the story of her time as an elevator operator in a department store when the company installed push button lifts and some folks didn’t want to step on without a ‘driver’. Believe it or not, world wide even with mandatory inspections, there are still malfunctions in elevator circuit boards that cause trouble. Dependency on technology is an interesting topic in hundreds of areas…faulty smoke alarms…etc., etc.

Push-Pull and Kick. Needle-Ball and Air Speed. So fundamental.
Buying TIME to get other things sorted out during an emergency.
Time is something you may not have much of when IMC and can't keep it right side up...!

I learne to fly in 1970 in an Aeronca Chief. My instructor was an older guy then. I can still remember "Kick the Ball" and "No matter what happens, always fly the sirplane".If you can't fly with just an altimeter, airspeed indicater and compass, you should not be flying.

All the while airline operators are pushing single pilot flight decks.
The combination of the two Will be disastrous.

Well, Duh/DOLT!!!! It would certainly help….

k1121j - couldn't be said better. And yesterday I read an article about airlines wanting to go to one-pilot flights.

They probably had the Asiana crash in mind. A cockpit full of 'experienced' 777 pilots and not one of them thought to monitor the speed, because, after all, that's what the autothrottle is for.

This is a total no-brainer! Too many "pilots" have become nothing but computer monitors. Remember when spins were part of the Commercial requirement? Now, they require an endorsement for flying a tailwheel airplane. Maybe we should start all students in a tailwheel again, and proceed from there.

Overreliance on cockpit automation has become the greatest risk to safety since Icarus and his brother flew too close to the sun.

Know how to fly an airplane??? WHAT? I thought this was an April Fool's joke in November.

A recipe for bankruptcy. Law suits would cripple airlines when hundreds of passengers are becoming uncomfortable with having only one pilot and the list of fatalities grows longer because of this idea. Are the decision makers 'Reverser Accountants'?
Counting Beans over Brains have brought many a company down, especially when irrational decisions are made for the sake of the dollar. It is the old "We had to destroy the village to save it" rationale.

Isn't this just common sense?

Guess what, I'll pay the extra what $7 or $8 dollars per passenger to keep the second pilot up there. Ridiculous to have sole pilot operation, due to temporary illnesses or ongoing medical issues. Bean counters are way out of line here!

Now, that's going to give a lot of confidence to the traveling public. As true as that statement is, this was the wrong way to state the issue.

this might be the most obtuse headline ever

When you get typed in an Airbus for a US 121 outfit it's not required to hand fly a traffic pattern without autopilot and autothrust. When I did it.

Hopefully, this lack of a requirement in recurrent training/evaluation is going to be fixed. Gosh, I'm sure the airline CFO's will just fold and give the training departments larger budgets without pushback for additional Sim time.

Steep turns (with autothrust), stalls, single engine ILS (from the FAF with autothrust), no flap/slat, and windshear recoveries are trained and evaluated.

I've found my experience dragging a Waco tail,thousands of hours hand flying a 1900 in the NE corridor, and actually feeling the yoke move cables and bellcranks in a DC-9 does not translate to the Bus in degraded automation modes.

Electrical system failures with both gens and the APU Tango Uniform results in the left PFD and ND giving degraded information with a ram air turbine and batteries is what needs to be trained and evaluated. At least on the Bus.

Unrelated:

They also need to make the alarms louder because taking a lightning strike departing Bogota that knocks a FADEC and its engine off line while you're at 11,000 and the crossing fix says 12,000 with CumuloGranite to the left and right doesn't get your seat fabric far enough up your butt on its own without the darn alarms blaring.

Push-Pull and Kick. Needle-Ball and Air Speed. So fundamental.
Buying TIME to get other things sorted out during an emergency.

No shit, Sherlock!

???? Ummmm......DO YA THINK?!?!?! lololol (Good GAWD!.....the whole world has gone MAD!)

Pilots first, system managers second.

YA THINK??!! This is a no-brainer, if I ever heard one.

No. Not much more needs to be said on this matter.

How many recent civil aviation disasters worldwide could have been avoided had the cockpit crew simply looked out the cockpit windscreen and flown the aircraft as opposed to over-reliance on data? Years ago it was assumed an ATP had mastered the basics of flight. I’m not so sure anymore. It is indeed frightening FAA had to issue this AC.

It's sad that today's pilots have become over reliant on technology to fly aircraft. They need
"seat of the pants" flying abilities in an emergency. Let's get back to basics. I have a Type
Rating in a Nihon YS-11 with 5K hours experience, 4K as PIC. We didn't have auto pilots or flight
directors back in the 1980's. We hand flew those planes. It made those who flew these dinosaurs
better pilots, IMHO.

You put any of us GA pilots in a modern Flight Simulator such as the A320 or 737 and we will end up flying it manually so why not give airline pilots more extensive training. I know some airline pilots that actually do like flying manually.

Have them read "Stick & Rudder" once each year.

About time, and should be tested to be able to fly and look out the window at the same time.

Gee, ya think?

...yea, that headline woke me up....

Give me a weeks cockpit training and I would probably fly any plane out there , leave me in the cockpit with auto pilot off and I m lost .all carriers should be able to handle major issues when taking over an aircraft with auto pilot off and that should be part of any airlines training . Quite frankly I m puzzled that is not part of aircraft training although I was aware of the issue.

With 50 yrs of airline experience under my belt I still avoir d flying some airlines out there , one of which I will not name &which is notorious for pilot errors ...whenever flying I opt for British ,(a few ) European, most Canadian , Australian & N.Z.,CX,DL, and a few South American .

Wait. what- you mean airline pilots will have to actually fly the aircraft? What a novel approach!

Children of the Magenta Line. It's a great YouTube video

Well Duh!

Well duh! I'm a mere private pilot however I have friends that fly dreamlines and the like. Privately they fly short wing pipers, tail draggers. I asked why they preferred these. The answer was "because that's real flying", in the large jets we are just cockpit managers rarely actually flying the things.

You would like to think that would be a prerequisite

Actually, all commercial pilots should be required to spend a minimum amount of time flying gliders. An unpowered glider is a pure airplane that requires real piloting skills to fly it. One of the most important of these skills is energy management. Captain Sullenberger was a glider pilot and his glider experience is credited with helping him successfully ditch his A320 in the Hudson River after it had become a glider following a bird strike.

I tried to buy some merchandise you advertise in NZ but your site doesn't allow, only us states

This appears to be falling on deaf ears. The article that follows this one tells us that the airlines want to fly with one pilot in the cockpit. As usual, profit trumps safety.

What is worse: two pilots who are not capable of flying their aircraft manually or one pilot?

All they want to do is save money stuff everybody who has families why dont they get rid of some of the wheels then they can save on tyres they a bunch of morons to even suggest such a thing

You mean that not all pilots can fly manually NOW?!!!!!

I totally agree with this article. The upcoming next generation of pilots grew up with automation, smart phones, touch screens. They are totally dependent on it. Just look at them, they cannot put the phone down. As a retired Captain and Check Airman we learned on old school analog dials and switches, my First Officer was the autopilot. We also know how to navigate with a paper map, compass, and stopwatch. With an HSI and DME I can get GPS accuracy. It is incumbent on our generation to pass the basic stick and rudder flying to the new generation, that includes hand flying in all types of bad weather, down to minimums, in emergency conditions. That's when you truly earn your pay.

Duh, captain obvious makes a statement. Unfortunately it is a serious problem - with so much automation, and often company dictates that you engage autopilot at 400ft and it doesn't come off until on approach at 500-1000 ft. So the perishable skills of hand flying get rusty or are no longer valid.

On the other hand, have a watch of this interview with Captain Benham of UAL 1175, who had catastrophic engine failure at 35,000 ft, 200 miles from Honolulu:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7_lzeY23dI&t=1837s (Capt. Behnam UAL#1175 Fan Blade Out Event INTERVIEW)

Not only was this Captain's hand flying skill exceptional, but he comments on the Asiana accident saying hand flying is becoming a lost art. He mentions that long haul pilots might only get 15 or 20 minutes of hand flying during a 14 hour flight... So the pilot of Asiana having 16,000 hours means he may only have 3-500 hours of actual hand flying experience.

So yes, hand flying proficiency should be subject to ongoing/recurrent training and review!

I've been saying this for 40 years. I started out being a stick and rudder pilot. More airline pilots need to get back to that type of flying so they can handle those situations without having to think about it.

I think due to erroneous flight data provided by automated systems

I'm uninspired by the article and the comments.

Silly me, I thought they could

Easy fix, part of the bi annual review is 6 touch and goes in a light taildragger.

Airlines share information about safety, training departments review events on a regular basis, make changes when necessary. Automation is required on Sid’s for precision. Improves concentration, less distraction, communication is easier. We hand fly when conditions allow. Simulator events allow for practice. Let the system work.

Wake up people
My son, who now has 20+ years in commercial flying, including time with a well known airline , is now flying in Alaska - because he loves hands on flying ..
He, also like so many, had to get his hours as a CFI, and so many times said his worst students were the airline pilots who couldn't remember how to fly a C172. WHAT????
If only we could have a Sully on every commercial flight - but we don't and they need to be able go back and remember the basic skills

DUH!

Is this really an issue?

Is this really a question?

Any Pilot especially those being paid for hire need to know how to handle the aircraft they are piloting “manually.” Even though technology has made great strides and improvements to aviation over the last 20 years, if you become over reliant on technology without being able to fly without them, you are a “ticking time bomb. Expect the unexpected, always.”

During recurrent training and evaluations, pilots need to demonstrate proficiency “stick and rudder,” and be able to deal with emergencies while hand flying the aircraft. In addition they should be able to function (show proficiency) when the glass cockpit displays fail. Also, annually in the simulator they should be able to recognize a stall and recover properly. It seems like every-time I watch an aviation documentary about an airline crash involving a stall the basics of lowering the nose, getting air over the wings so the wings can regain flying again goes out the window.

When I learned to fly (just a GA pilot, 15 years, 1500 hours), I had wondered why some airline pilots owned GA aircraft and flew in their time off. I think I see it now; automation if you have or want to use it, as much stick-and-rudder time as you want, a different perspective on preparation, navigation, and “aviating”. Barry & Brian Schiff, and Mike Jesch, come to mind.

all the flight crew in our airline hand fly the plane till RVSM airspace dictates the autopilot use

Duh!

Back in the day I was taught to fly by feel. So that’s how I taught my students. Then the FAA in about 1969/70 told us to teach by reference to the instruments. Now look at what has happened.
During my airline flying years when an autopilot failed, it was no big deal. Oh, the good old days👏👏
The time is coming when there will be zero pilots in the cockpit. Count me out.

Technology is marketed as a labor savings. In essence, it builds complacency and dulls skills. Tech is pushing the airlines to do away with pilots.

Two 737-<AX incidents come to mind...

I remember flying with a Midwest regional in the 90's. No autopilot, no FMS, 4-8 legs a day, hand flying +/- 100 ft.Sometimes 5 approaches a day to minimums,

I certainly didn't make up the phrase "regulations are written in blood".

But with the current (US) FAA regs a pilot could fly a A-320 for his/her entire career without ever demonstrating a VFR traffic pattern (take off to landing) without using the autopilot or auto thrust).

Looks like the (US) feds are finally going to force the 121 operators to train this (other than single engine approaches from the marker, steep turns and stalls).

Of course the FAA won't do anything without ICAO involvement, so I hope we lead the way.

All about the benjamins, and SIM time is expensive. At least the reality of the past 20 years is getting some attention.

I've been seeing new hire FO's using the automation from a couple hundred feet after takeoff to a terrified look on their faces at 200AGL on a coupled ILS in VFR.

Is the FAA, in its infinite wisdom, suggesting that current pilots cannot manually fly their aircraft? Sounds like idiotic government speak to me.

Ridiculously unsafe!!!!!!

That's a really stupid comment from a Fed. Probably projection! Look it up!

When I read accident reports I often notice that the pilots sometimes do not realize what is happening with the instruments. Juan Browne of blancolirio says, "Aviate, navigate, communicate". Pilots need to do more manual flying, especially on domestic flights. Since the crews don't get paid till the aircraft doors close, maybe the flight crew should STOP getting paid when the autopilot is switched on.

What? They aren't capable now?? This is a disgrace to the entire pilots association and their worthless union for not demanding pilots have the skills to fly manually! But god forbid the union actually increase the pilots skills.

Just make sure that these lone pilots are healthy and not prone to heart attacks. If not, pray that a passenger can land a plane. If none, prepare for a disaster.