Is pilot proficiency diminishing with modern, simpler handling, high-performance aircraft?

Antonio wrote:

Also, in the accident case, I cant avoid thinking that the analysis puts too much stress in ATC’s handling of the situation. I know too many scenarios where asking better than that of ATC would be simply asking for too much. Have I perhaps relaxed my expectations from ATC too much?

I’ve seen this video before, at least two times in full. I absolutely do think that the analysis is on point. ATC in that case was terrible and put a lot of stress on the pilot. That consecutively degraded her performance as a pilot.

I don’t think this case study supports your point very well, if at all.

Edit: Also, I don’t think the Cirrus provides “easier access to high performance aircraft for all”. There are some Cirri in flight clubs, mostly SR-20s, and these mostly have the highest requirements for a check out. They are also typically the most expensive aircraft for renters, so they are not exactly “accessible” and certainly not “for all”.

I’ve also heard that the Cirrus has a “not nice” stall characteristics. I haven’t flown one yet, so I cannot comment from experience.

Antonio wrote:

Thanks! I’ll take that as an answer to my question on my expectations of ATC …

Well, I’m a low-time pilot with little experience, but most of the ATC interactions I had so far were excellent. I just think that the case study in question emphasizes that ultimately, YOU as a pilot are in command and YOUR life is at stake, so if you feel ATC is putting a strain on you instead of helping you (which is their job!), absolutely voice that concern and, if you feel overwhelmed by ATC, consider withdrawing from the problematic airspace in question until you get your head clear again.

Also, the magic word “unable” should not be forgotten from a pilot’s R/T vocabulary. One can still argue with ATC later when safely on the ground…

Most ATCOs are doing a great job, I think, but they are only humans after all and can put you in danger – probably even without knowing, and one needs to keep that in mind.

There are two things that degrades with time: losing visual navigation awarness/skills and losing visual flying awarness/skills, the only thong left is “radio flying”, these applies to both VFR and IFR flying

Obviously there is a theoritical limit to “visual flying” even with 100% flying & navigational awarness/skills when traffic is too dense, especially with Heavy/Medium wake turbulence is around, maybe those who flies mix of VFR/IFR Flight Calibration in GA aircraft with heavy metal have some lessons to share on situational awarness and PIC/ATC comms?

For navigational awarness, some of it has to do too much procedural IFR flying (you know HDG & ALT) while pressing AP most of the time and ATC taking care of the rest on my behalf, this “model of flying” gets really stressed in busy RT VFR/IFR controlled environments or when visiting an uncontrolled VFR only jungle

Losing navigational awarness while VFR is worse than IFR, while IFR can get crunched on arrival by machine gun RT but at least they have few protections Rate1Turn, LongFinal and ATC own traffic/wake separation…

I have flown with 100% IFR pilots (most are ex-airline and GA ones as well), they can easily get lost when someone else joining circuit and they can’t spot it in AFIS/AG airfields, they can’t just ignore RT and just fly the airplane, while in ATC airports, they can’t get pushy on ATC when they spot visually airfield and go for “some visual cowboy flying” to finish the day: go for visual approach, tight circle to land, or cancel IFR and join visual circuit…some still need “ATC help” to get “vectors for long 5NM final to land & separated from traffic with 100km visbility” in the DA40 or SR22

For handflying awarness, handling in tight “visual circuits” while keeping a good lookout for traffic has also degraded, people can’t fly to an airport with busy traffic without “ATC helping them”, I know flying between B737s and C150s is different with regards to wake & traffic distances but PIC still have to spot traffic and manage OWN distance to traffic & wake while keeping small distance to threshold to make a landing in between, it gets complicated with who owns traffic & wake separation between ATC or PIC

This is highly relevant in busy ATC radio envirenemnt where controlled VFR/IFR gets load of tactical instructions that is impossible to keep navigational situational awarness (it’s happens to all pilots, no exception just how long before they break or push back), for that scenario one has to keep his own navigational situational awarness, I tend to use my iPad to keep track of the navigation as the PFD+MFD belongs to ATC when RT is busy

While not the case in this flight, and maybe out of topic, for uncontrolled IFR flying in IMC some pilots needs ATC help to vector them away from terrain, from traffic, to cloudbreak, to route away from ice…and some can just take care of themseleves

I am not sure what would have been the best PIC action in this flight? but personally, if weather is good after 2nd mis-judged attempt I would have asked to go for visual approach while IFR or just cancel IFR then orbit in downwind or base leg 1nm-2nm from threshold and make a tight landing between heavy metal subject to wake turbulence rather than dancing all over the place with a crontroller who is behind his paper strips (obviously ATC need to tell the heavy metal they may have some TCAS warning), ok, hold my beer…

IMO

• The simpler you can make a plane, the better.
• Concentrate training on stick and rudder skills, controlling the plane
• Concentrate training on SA

The more complex the manual systems are, and the more there are of them, the more sources for error, and more importantly – less focus on aircraft control and SA.

The whole situation in that video could be avoided by simply having an holding pattern for light GA. ATC could simply said, “hold over X at Y feet” until the airspace had cleared up enough for her to land. If she did anything wrong? of course she did or she and the passengers would be alive today. She was PIC after all.

While i’ve been confronted to that kind of situation, although not as stressy as this one and being roughly 300hours now, I feel it could also happen to me.

The first time in Cannes, I was very low hours in a DR400, and we were 5 traffic, bright sun but very bumpy weather, in the pattern while an IFR came in.
Comind end of the short circuit for R17, ATC asked me to turn “south of La Roquette” instead of just saying “turn base”. I misjudge the point when hearing “La Roquette” which is usually associated with the long circuit, and kept on the long circuit. The jet was coming and on the long circuit, the ground level rises although we are on 1000msl, we are about 400ft AGL. It was really bumpy and increased stress a lot when ATC asked me to do a right 360 holding after waiting much too long to ask it, which made me completely out of any circuity, not far from Grasse… ATC was overloaded and we had kind of argument “what are you doing here? i’m following your directives…”, I was stressed and I really understood how it can get really messy in Cannes with a lot of small aircraft in the pattern and IFR jets. I finally landed safely, I was ~70hours.

The second example was during my IFR training in Marseille LFML, I had to insert into continous airliner flow for ILS R31 with a DA42 doing max 150, which airliners are taking that speed in short final. The ATC very nicely put me in a holding place where there was no traffic and no occurence of wake turbulence, waiting for 15minutes, and then take me down when traffic was less intense. ATc managed it very nicely and although my instructor put me in various failures situation (with check list, flow and decision making processes), I felt much better helped by ATC. I was 250 hours.

Of course experience does matter, proficiency is key either from pilots and ATC, especially to protect from such messy situation, badly handled by ATC (which is a behind-computer comment).
But ATC must help pilot and sometimes we pilots have to resist ATC. It’s still hard for me to decide when I need to resist to ATC decision, but I come to that kind of decision faster and faster. My instructors often told me to really understand ATC, and don’t hesitate to enforce for safety.
The second thing that they insist is “aviate navigate communicate”, which could have helped the pilot, that unfortunately was so stressed that she lost the “aviate”…

In that case I don’t know what I would have done. The best position from my chair would have been to land on 13L or R after the first go around, waiting for a slot in a 360 hold…

I think the most important thing when flying is that ATC have no idea of pilot skills or capability, so they make assumptions, where ATC give you more than your skin can take (keeps you high then slams you fast down between two LearJets) or conservatively assume you will need too much help (send you on 10NM final because it’s “challenging 1500ft ceiling” today for VFR or vector you 25NM away until things calm down), PIC need to say where he sits in his flying or comfort,
- If you want tight visual manoeuvring or VFR/IFR hold, you have to tell them or suggest a hold
- If you have runway/traffic in sight and want shortcut, you have to tell them
- If you want tailwind/crosswind runway, you make those calls
- If you you can fly 170kts ILS, tell them yes or no

I know that in France, ATC controller have a budget for monthly flying and most are PPL – hoping that helps. We have several in our club.