Steam guage endorsement

[xshuttlefa]

OK, so I know I'm the stupid one here, but even in glass cockpits, are there not back-up steam gauges? Aren't the students taught to fly the back-ups?

I would think so, but "only for an emergency", like partial panel. But that's not the point everyone is making. Those who learn on nothing but "glass" are really and truly lost without that map and display. The need to actually think about your position in the sky is being lost to "the GPS screen says I'm there, so I am " And it's true, GPS is great.

But there's no "thinking" going on, except what button to press next. No trying to keep your spot while flying an approach because you can see the next waypoint coming up. The point being made against learning in all glass is the basic skill degradation. Like trying to teach algebra to someone without fully understanding basic math.

The scanning techniques, the building blocks of fully understanding what each instrument represents, the mental situational awareness, is all being lost to the Big Screen. Like the lack of control and rudder usage to those who've flown nothing but trike landing gear (guilty). The skills will be taught, but they won't be as strong. That's the downfall of " zero to 300 hours in all glass cockpits" many well-funded schools use and the shift in aviation to all glass cockpits.

Does it matter? If you can go from zero hours to left-seat in a jet and never see steam gauges, then no. But as the flying fleet stands now, theres more steam then glass out there and those who've never flown traditional gauges are in for some difficulty.

I think everyone should learn to fly traditional gauges, if only for a few hours and then move on. But that's me. I think everyone should be made to learn to drive a standard transmission too.

 

[Iceman07]

The point being made against learning in all glass is the basic skill degradation. Like trying to teach algebra to someone without fully understanding basic math.

The scanning techniques, the building blocks of fully understanding what each instrument represents, the mental situational awareness, is all being lost to the Big Screen. Like the lack of control and rudder usage to those who've flown nothing but trike landing gear (guilty).quote]

All good points, and well taken.

But... Just to play "The Devils Advocate" here:

Steam gauges are becoming obsolete. Look at all of the new GA airplanes that have been delivered in the past couple of years. What percentage are all steam vs. glass? If I were in the market for a new airplane, I tink it would be foolish to not buy an all glass cockpit.

I believe (as you pointed out) that flying by steam gauges will, very shortly, become equivilant to flying partial panel. Even today, if you lose the glass, you have, by definition, an emergency.

I think that within the next ten years, glass will be norm, and steam gauges will go the way of the NDB.

My concern is, like everyone else has already stated, what do we do during the transition?

 

[flyer172r]

Two points I'm going to bring up. First is that as you point out, almost all new airplanes are being built with glass, but in terms of the total number of airplanes out there, the ones that were built with steam gauges is way more than those being built with glass. The production volume is just too small to make a huge dent in the percentage of planes with glass cockpits. And yes, in a few years you won't find a new airplane that doesn't have glass (I almost doubt if you can now), but a lot of operators will still be using their old planes.

Also, you say that steam gauges will go the way of the NDB, and yet even though we've had GPS for 10 years, the NDBs are still out there and operating.