Originally Posted by
sabenaboy
Very good example of a knee jerk reaction.
Not much different than individual companies banning LAHSO (which most do) or a verbal confirmation/callout of compass/runway alignment on line-up after the ComAir 5191 accident in Kentucky back in 2006. Procedures are constantly being adjusted/amended after screw-ups that result in incidents/accidents/threats to safety and it has always been so in aviation. In fact, oversight authorities investigating them will demand it if a company's procedures or safety culture are found lacking. The "knee jerk" reaction is a blanket procedural change designed to prevent a recurrence with immediate effect, and sometimes it's entirely appropriate because it works and many spread industry-wide.
Obviously,
the long-recommended, verbal confirmation/callout by the crew that a runway one is cleared to line-up on/cleared to T/O from coincides with the compass heading of the aircraft before applying power to help prevent taking off from the wrong runway either wasn't incorporated into this Company's procedures or adhered-to by the crew if it was. The simple procedure of having both pilots verbally confirm Rwy clearance vs compass heading before closing a line-up checklist is a final backstop, prevention measure against this sort of thing when SA has broken down. This recommendation was already written in passenger and crew blood, and it doesn't really matter if one calls it "knee-jerk" or not.
Sterile cockpit, approaching assigned altitude callouts, no circling approaches unless in VFR conditions, no side-stepping below 1,000' AGL, etc etc etc could all be said to have have roots in "knee jerk" reactions to incidents/accidents. It doesn't automatically mean they're the wrong answer.