KTT, if the captain ascertained that the B.A. and snow depth (maybe why he went out) were satisfactory he was indeed using his initiative to maximum advantage.
Again, as is so often the case with FR, we just don't have the facts. While I have NO love for FR, sometimes they - or more specifically their pilots - are "not guilty". In fact, the competence of FR pilots is far from being the issue of interest (and concern).