egbt
The points you raise are, as I see them, valid with the exception of the last permit issued. The aircraft had undergone a 200hr service which baselined the maintenance requirements so, in this matter, the signature was correct.
The age old rule on buying any aircraft, permit, CoA, whatever, is if the aircraft paperwork does not seem right, then walk away.
The BMAA have already undergone a massive overhaul of the inspector network and have implemented most if not all of the recommendations long before the report was issued. They, I hear, are about to appoint a new Chief Inspector who brings with him a wealth of experience. We can only wait and see what a future appointment brings.
In their audits with the CAA (also criticised in the AAIB report) the BMAA were seen to be complying with their remit.
Human factors have let down a system. The system may have needed improvement, but it was assumed to be working well until this incident. The systems that were in place were built from experience and I am sure that the new ones will be built on experience too. The regulation empire that we all fly under is based on previous experience. We should not forget that we are one of the most heavily regulated countries in the world and, as far as microlights are concerned, we are by some margin the most heavily regulated. That regulation did not stop this accident and whilst the aircraft in question is sold throughout the world, the failures occured under our heavily regulated regime.
This brings its own questions. There are those that say if you impose regulations, people will generally comply with them, but they will go no further. The FAA impose considerably lighter regulation on GA and none on their microlight fleet. Their level of fatality is slightly less than ours (per hour flown). Is this because more responsibility is put on the aircraft owner/pilot to ensure that the aircraft is up to scratch.
Who has not collected an aircraft from an annual and flown it on the basis that it will, at that time, be at its most reliable?
Barshifter, yes you are correct. I was quoting the figures from the AAIB report.
This report raises many interesting questions. The correct answer is often not the most obvious answer. In saying that, the report is very focussed on the BMAA and, as such, has missed or overlooked many questions which I consider equally important.
As to the survival of the BMAA? This is the only case of structural failure that in an extended recent history. We learn from experience, some of it tragic. We would not be where we are now unless we learnt from tragedies and we will be in a better position when we have fully learnt from this tragedy.