Of all the posts that I have read regarding this tragic accident the one that stands out more than any is the one by ‘disconnected’ because, I believe, it brings out some of the underlying issues that need to be addressed.
I know quite a few of the MK personnel and from my discussions with them I can only second all that ‘disconnected’ has said. The problem comes from the top. Any airline can bring in an amount of experts to solve a problem (Ex CX crews in this case), but unless the airline is prepared to change its culture, and take on board those recommendations, the exercise becomes a waste of the CX crew’s time and effort.
The culture within MK can be exemplified by the reported comment from their Operations Manager, John Power, who, when asked about its safety record said that it was “excellent”. This known as Denial, and probably permeates throughout MK. I understand that ‘sissies’ are not welcome in MK – so they all battle on not wanting to be labeled as sissies, flying beyond the bounds of normal Flight and Duty time limitations so as to earn that extra ‘foreign’ dollar that is so valuable in Zimbabwe.
Don’t get me wrong, the line crews, are a great bunch of guys who, in my opinion, are being exploited by an unscrupulous management.