TD,
Unfortunately, I believe you have got it incredibly wrong here. This job is all about credibility. Credibility is hard won but so easily lost. You have earned great respect from many on this forum and the general public for your incredible strength and persistence to discover the truth behind these tragic events.
Some lines of inquiry were red herrings and some in the future may still be, but you have assessed the vast amount of information incredibly well and focused a lot of attention on what was, fundamentally, a broken system within the RAF, namely the airworthiness process of the RAF's current aircrafts.
This has earned you a great deal of credibility within this forum, the media and general public. You have become 'the official voice' of the relatives as seen from the outside looking in. However, your comments following the announcement of the OBE have all but crushed that credibility. Many of your keenest supporters have voiced their opinion that this is a minor misjudgement or quotes taken out of context, but the manner of your post and the two articles lead me to believe that you stand by these quotes.
This is a great shame as I believe your comments will lead to difficulty in you gaining 'inside' information in the future if you need it, as your previous methodical approach has been reduced to pure mudslinging. You know the RAF, you know the people involved, you know what makes us tick. The award of the OBE is nothing less than deserved for OC CXX as the situation he faced, so soon after assuming command was unprecedented in the history of Kinloss. Having to ensure that CXX remained motivated and committed in 2 Theatres of War and providing Homeland Assistance following the tragedy was no easy task.
Your comments will be taken by the general public as the reaction of all the relatives, even though some have already commented on this forum that they are not, and will obviously impact on OC CXX who no doubt has been affected by these comments.
I urge you to reconsider your comments so that this can be put behind us and there can be clear unity going into the Inquest this year. If not, it is a sad day as it looks like your quest for the truth has degenerated into solely ‘someone to blame’.