I completely agree with what_next.
However, this is more of a multi-crew CRM thing than something that will affect most people here. Most of us are more likely to think “1000’? That’s not possible? I wonder if I forgot to…? Shit, yes, I wrote it down somewhere and…? Oh, after take-off checks…”
Of course I accept the opinion of pilots more professional than me. If you both say a blank field would be better than it’s probably right.
It has never happened to me though: I always set the altitude. I also see no big danger, because you must be aware of the altitude you are climbing to so it should get your attention in the climb latest. No? You can still let it climb and press ALT at the right altitude …
My 2p’s worth is this:
In 2008 I flew from Houston, TX, to Tulsa, OK, in a long thin regional jet of some sort. I went into the cockpit after landing, to nose around. Spoke to the two pilots, both aged about 18… At the end, as the next crew were stepping into the cockpit, the previous ones made a point of power cycling the cockpit, to wipe out all the previous avionics settings. Clearly this was done for a good reason.
