Originally Posted by
ZH-127
I'm not saying that they dont happen, they do happen.
The point im trynig to get across is that if i made silly mistakes in my job, although the immediate effect of that mistake wouldnt be that severe, the repercusions to myself would be severe.
I.e. if i made a silly mistake such getting my figures wrong, the company would lose a deal, and there is no doubt in my mind that i would lose my job. For that reason, i ensure that i dont make silly mistakes. I make mistakes, but not silly mistakes which shouldn't happen.
Its hard to give an example with out explaining my job, which would take all afternoon. I hear what and understand what you guys and girls are saying, and i appreciate most of what is being said.
The guys flying were no doubt professional and accurate, but they still made a silly stupid mistake (or so it looks - dont want to cast dispersions), the mistake shouldnt have been made, and would have been stopped by a simple two second check.
Its like me walking into a meeting with our directors to talk about supplier engagement processes and rates, without checking my figures before hand. I just wouldn't do it.
In the same way as i've had it hammered into me since my first flight, check your compass upon line up with centreline.
Anyway, enough of this speculation, obviously we are all going to view the cause of this differently, some are taught different things by FI's etc.
One thing that can be certain, is that the aviation world needs to learn from this disaster to ensure it never happens again. If this happens, and there are no crashes such as this again.. then perhaps those people didnt die in vain.
RIP.
Please define 'silly mistake' and 'stupid mistake' as different from just a 'mistake'.
My point is there are mistakes and there are violations. One is unintentional and the other is intentional. Could be I don't see them but I can't find any violations... only a series of mistakes by LOTS of people, not just the crew.
And you are right. THIS accident will not be repeated but there will be another accident if not in the airline industry, in some other industry where humans do repetitive tasks but where failure comes with a high price. Someone will mistakenly think the valves on a nuclear plant are reading erroneously, leave the bow unlocked when the ferry departs... etc.
An example.. here in the States a phone number is 10 digits. It is a relatively simple task with a very simple keypad. Ever place a phone call and do it incorrectly so you dialed the wrong number, dialed a number for Friend A when you meant to call Friend B? How does one explain such a 'stupid mistake' for such a simple task one does over and over and over....
You might argue flying an airplane is very different from dialing a phone number and you would be correct in a manner. But let's say you know that there is the possibility that if you dial the wrong number, your phone will explode and kill you. The first times you dial, you are VERY careful but after a few years of dialing the phone with no consequence you still know the phone can explode but what does your experience base tell you?
We live in the center.. at one end is the event so remote we think it will never happen (9-11) and at the other end is the event that happens frequently but we think we know the risks (driving in rush hour traffic where fatal crashes occur every day) and can compensate. And then in a few brief seconds, everything is re-arranged.