Flapnfeather, I don’t disagree with the principle you put forward.
However, as I recall life in PNG the first two were sacred…the others were open to negotiation. If it gets dark you land and wait until the morning. I always carried a sleeping bag, water and “anti-mossie spray”. And never go past a gas station without topping up.
The weather was very much ‘what you see is what you get’, forecasts were a luxury. Maybe nowadays with the Internet and satellite weather this has changed but I doubt whether those pics will show if the Tari or Como gap is open or closed.
Flight manuals...well I suppose we had one of those somewhere; I mean we had to have a quick read of it every six months or so before a base check.
The best attribute to have was lots of “native cunning”!
I suspect that none of the above will have had much to do with the sad accident that is the subject of the thread. To those that survived all the best for a speedy recovery, to the family and friends of those that didn’t, you are in my thoughts.
HA