Avoid common automation surprises by focusing on critical flight priorities during complex instrument approaches. [Credit: Max Trescott]
Key Takeaways:
Pilots should "stay ahead" by identifying and planning the "next two things," including specific avionics inputs, rather than just generalized maneuvers, especially in high-workload instrument flight.
Prioritization is key: Immediately focus on critical tasks like rolling out on headings, leveling off at altitudes, and intercepting final approach courses, allowing other tasks to wait.
Working ahead can cause "automation surprises" if not executed carefully (e.g., activating vectors to final prematurely can disrupt active procedures); pilots need to understand avionics nuances and how to recover.
Crucially, pilots must continuously monitor and verify autopilot actions for critical parameters (headings, altitudes, courses), as pre-setting without verification can lead to dangerous errors, even when trying to work ahead.
Pilots are taught to “stay ahead of the airplane,” but there’s relatively little guidance on exactly what that means and how to do it. Years ago, a high-time CFII asked me if I knew the most important thing in instrument flying. I don’t recall my answer, but his was brilliant.
He said the most important thing was the “next two things.”
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Max Trescott is the host of the Aviation News Talk podcast, which focuses on GA and safety. He’s the author of Max Trescott’s G1000 and Perspective Glass Cockpit Handbook and another book on the G3000. He was inducted into NAFI’s Flight Instructor Hall of Fame in 2026 and earned the 2008 National CFI of the Year.
![Avoid common automation surprises by focusing on critical flight priorities during complex instrument approaches. [Credit: Max Trescott]](https://www.flyingmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/09/IMG_2341.jpg)
