You can tell that I have been stewing on these issues for some time.
My latest thought is that ultimately free market forces are sculpting this industry. It is mainly the appearance of cut-throat competition that is forcing airlines to cut costs in order to compete and maintain market share.
The real issue is whether the market is competing fairly, because if one particular airline is ignoring regulations to keep their costs down, another that refuses to cut corners to such a degree could eventually be forced out of business for what amounts to unfair or even illegal competition.
It is my contention that some airlines are indeed failing to maintain the minimum standards as set out by JAR, and are therefore forcing some to follow or die. I'm not advocating the abolishment of the competition that keeps air fares reasonable and within the reach of the average punter, but since the market has reached such a state recently, wouldn't it be prudent for authorities to make sure that standards are not dropping below minimum levels in regards to regulated procedures as well as the treatment of staff and health and safety standards?
The regulations were designed to maintain standards in a safety critical industry, so at what point are they going to realise that the fierce competition and self regulation just won't mix anymore?
As I said on another thread, I saw many regulations routinely broken by BMHS and Aviance. I did my duty (even though it cost me my job/career) and reported these incidents to the relevant authorities. Some of which investigated, but when the investigation consisted of them basically asking the companies whether they were doing it right, and accepting their answer "yes, of course we are", you can understand why I have no faith in the system to enforce the regulations. And again, by the time they do, probably because of a big smoking hole, they may then realise that the airlines can no longer financially, or through lack of infrastructure, actually comply with the regulations.