Originally Posted by
PAXboy
Tragically, as we see in so many walks of life, man does not learn from the previous generation. The landmark explanation is still: The Tombstone Imperative: The Truth about Air Safety by Andrew Weir
Whenever there is a failure causing death - the Ponte Marandi bridge in Genoa (2018) the London Kings Cross Tube fire (1987) and the Shuttle Challenger disaster (1986) - even the VW Dieselgate scandal (2015) which did not directly cost lives - there always turns out to be:
- Someone saving money and/ot time to please the big boss.
- Someone has pointed out the risk months (or years) in advance and was ignored.
It is the human condition because, until people die - very little changes. Sometimes, not even then.
Regarding the Challenger disaster, and I heard this from a reliable American source, it was political pressure, was it to be the first woman or the first school teacher in to space, the eyes of USA were upon it, NASA knew that the craft wasn't, so to speak, airworthy but they were ordered to launch it regardless.
Regarding new type certifications it's not Boeing at fault here, it's the regulating authorities that allow it, compare the MAX to the B737-100/200, is that the same type to you, the MD80/90's and B717's are DC9's, the F70/100's are F28's, the F50 a F27 and so it goes on, I can't think of Airbus yet extracting the urine in such a respect but the American manufacturers certainly are, the Brits might joke that CAA stands for 'Campaign Against Aviation' for their strictness, perhaps the FAA might think about earning itself such a pseudonym also!