Quote:
Originally Posted by ChinookDriver  Can you hand fly whenever you want, or are there rules about when you can do it? |
Pretty much the same response as Alchemy's post. We've got a couple of guys that go AP on at 600 AGL, but they're few and far between. Most will handly up to around 10K. Now, if you're on the last day of a 4 or 5 day, that AP might start coming on a bit sooner.
I'll normally disengage to AP after intercepting the LOC and GS on an instrument approach or whenever I feel like it on a visual. Most of the time on a visual, the FD is damn useless anyway, and that's what the AP is gonna use. If it's an outstation and I've been given the instruction to enter the downwind or base, I'll get a big grin on my face and kill the AP right about then.
The AP is MEL-able, but I've never had the misfortune to fly one of those aircraft.....