Originally Posted by
AerialPerspective
Sorry, but it's not irrelevant. Yes we can all make small errors with gargantuan consequences,
Collins made gargantuan errors with gargantuan consequences.
Originally Posted by
AerialPerspective
it is not irrelevant because he was so methodical.
Hearsay. By what actual criteria do you assess someone as 'methodical" and then extrapolate that to the likelihood of making an error?
Originally Posted by
AerialPerspective
This led to an effort to not just say "Well, he made an error" but to ask "WHY" he was led to make the error
Of course you ask "why" he made the error - to not do so would be imbecilic - but the answer isn't hard. Collins was put into an unfamiliar environment and asked to perform a task (sightseeing) in which he had no experience. When you do that, even good people start making silly mistakes.
Originally Posted by
AerialPerspective
As for the KLM Captain, he was known to be arrogant and demanding, not something Collins was known for.
Actually, no, the KLM Captain wasn't. And even if he was, does that explain away his catastrophic error?
A colleague of Collins in the "25 year thread" said he "could be a pleasant chap to fly with, but had a hard nosed streak". I've also heard via another ex colleague of Collins (hearsay again) that recently before the crash, a First Officer had filed an incident report against him over a dangerous approach into NAN. He also failed school certificate mathematics. Make of that what you will; but from my high school days I don't remember that exam as one that should be a challenge for someone you'd envisage being in command of a heavy jet.
The point is, posthumously you can paint pretty much any picture you want to paint of someone. But if you believe that Collins possessed some special qualities that made the possibility of him committing major errors of judgement remote; you're an idiot.