This has been an interesting discussion to date, and as evidenced by several posts, many are all too quick to jump on the crew and blame them.
In many cases the crew ARE that final net that can prevent an incident or accident, however there may also be other circumstances that contribute heavily to the cause.
I'd like to share an experience I encountered many years ago, however I am going to feed you the incident details as they unfolded, allowing some discussion between events.
What might at first seem like an quick open and shut case was, in fact, not.
I telephoned Ansett Crewing on a wet, cloudy early morning in Brisbane, to ask whether my flights had been changed, due to the previous night's heavy rain, low cloud, and misty conditions in BNE, and reports of several flight cancellations and diversions.
After a brief chat, the Crewing Officer - Geoff, John, Murph, Dick, Floyd or Holtie - commented that he "was looking at a very interesting sight....a twin-engined turbo prop, that had run off the taxiway and down into the storm water drain."
Following a series of phone calls, I finally located the pilot - who by this time was back at home. I called her, and asked her if she felt she would like any assistance I might be able to offer her, using the resources of the AFAP.
She replied that she would.
On arriving at her house, she described how she had been taxi-ing the aircraft (a Cessna Conquest, from memory) late the previous night trying to follow the taxiway lights and markings, whilst continually having to use a cloth to wipe the fog from the interior of the windscreen.
Her visibility this night was impaired not only by the external rain, mist, and fog, but also internally because of the fogging of the windscreen.
All taxi way lights were serviceable.
During the taxiing, she dropped the cloth, leaned down to pick it up, and suddenly found the aircraft running downhill into the stormwater drain.
She had not yet (thankfully) submitted an Incident Report (the old 225).
Management wanted her immediate termination, and had told her she was to see them the following day.
Comments please.