ThrillHouse, you ask:
could you explain exactly how Radar would have been used to prevent the crash at Lockhart River? As this crash is responsible for the vast majority of the lives lost I expect you have quite a detailed response.
The British pilots who read my presentation (Chapter 14 Cape York crash – 15 dead – local radio operator hijacked.
You will not believe we have airline aircraft operating into airports completely calling in the blind with no radio operator on the ground. I understand that in the UK an airline aircraft cannot operate unless there is either a tower or a Certified Air/Ground Operator at the airport. This is just commonsense.
The book clearly covers the serious Qantas incident, where 87 people went to within a hair’s breadth of losing their lives because the radar was not used properly.
British professional pilots will be amazed that every time I say we should use the radar coverage we’ve got to maximise safety, some Aussie pilot comes up and says, “But because we have areas without radar, that means we shouldn’t use it anywhere!”