Also, all of us Ascent people, mil people, or those working for other contractors are mates. We're (almost) all ex-forces, and we have known each other for years. It is ridiculous to think people won't talk.
Of course we all talk to each other. The company use the "old boys network" to recruit and vet staff, but then think it can be suspended in order to cover up the cracks.... mental!
Is there nobody at the top in Ascent who might ask
why the guys at the coalface feel obliged to talk to outsiders about the problems?
What kind of company is it that thinks the best way to address safety fears, is to stop people talking about what scares them?
I'm not on about differences in opinion on how to run the business, I would dismiss the views of a 40 year old man, with only 22 years military service, when he tells me how to run a business at a profit. Business is business and should be left to business people to sort. Not to be tugged in every direction possible by Politicians and Fighter Pilots.
But somewhere in there, between going for the lowest bidder and pricing the work correctly at the start, you need to hear the knocking noise from the engine room. Full speed ahead can only continue while the engine is going well.
QFIs need to teach the students to fly, and Business Relationship Managers need to manage the relationships. The client has agreed to outsource the choosing of aircraft, so Ascent has chosen. The QFIs need to do what they get the big bucks for, which is to teach people to fly that aircraft.
Somebody needs to have an ear to ground though, there must be an open door for people to vice their fears. Nobody expects senior managers to give as hit about the opinions on business matters of the troops, but safety issues, well that stuff should never ever be swept under the carpet.