Re: complex quesrtion

Ted,
I'm quite certain all modern railroads require that the crews be qualified on any operating district they run on. This involves not only running accompanied by another already qualified engineer, but also usually a test on the topography of the line and how it's layed out. A friend of mine works for Amtrak out of Boston and if he doesn't make the run down to New York for long enough (because he's working switcher shifts) he actually has to go on his day off and ride with another engineer to maintain his qualification on the territory. This is why railroads require pilots for foreign equipment and the people who operate it. I'm not an engineer, but I think the issue is that there are a lot of times where you need to make decisions that require long range knowledge of what the track is going to do. All the mainline steam exursions you hear about definitely have pilots involved.
Regards,
Trevor H.