Yep, thats absolutely right which is why, certainly during my days on the fleet, the crew execs (Captain, Eng, AEO and both leads) would speak with eng ops to check out which airframe they would 'prefer' the day before or whatever. Now thats not a dig at the guys in eng ops or on the line, it is just common sense really. At the end of the day, the Crew execs are the guys who will decide how best to conduct and execute the mission - NOT the boys and girls in eng ops or on the line. Endex Matey!
Essentially, there were good lines of communication then?
Something we used to do quite a lot of in the RAF. Now we just seem to send emails, make assumptions, and have meetings instead of just bimbling over to speak or picking up the ruddy phone.
Not hard is it?