vsf, can you be serious? I cannot imagine that anyone could be a troll on this thread, but what on earth possesses you to post here (for the first time?) such incendiary rubbish and at this time of year in particular? Now I realise that you are a serving helicopter pilot and I am not and never was, but your illogical contribution seems to owe little or nothing to your professional status so I will rush in and no doubt prove the proverb correct:
apparently serviceable aircraft
The discussion has concerned (well recently) not the serviceability but the airworthiness, and it would be an understatement to rephrase your post to "an apparently unairworthy aircraft", to say the least.
what do you expect the AOCs to say?
Well, personally if they had merely endorsed the original BoI finding I would be satisfied, but evidently they weren't.
What choice did they have?
Not to make the outrageous finding that they did, for a start.
Years of conjecture about things that might have occurred has achieved precious little because that's exactly what it is - conjecture
Couldn't agree more, and yet Messrs W & D still felt able to produce their "guilty unless proved innocent" finding on just that basis.
Draw a line under it.
You forgot to mention moving on and smelling coffee!
For the sake of the other 27 families if nothing else
Why would they draw any comfort from their loved ones having died because of the alleged pilots' gross negligence? Why would it be more hurtful to be told that the cause was unknown, or even possibly that it was due to the aircraft's unairworthiness? I only raise these points because you have. Is it not better not to speak on other peoples behalf, when we have no idea of what they truly think, or do you anyway?
Finally may I add that I understand from your previous posts on other threads that you are presently an SAR pilot. If I have that wrong I apologise, but in any case may I say how much those who carry out such important and hazardous work are admired, especially when the rest of us enjoy the company of friends and family at this time of year. To all of you that serve and protect us, whether on duty now or hopefully also with your own loved ones, a very sincere thank you from an old BOF!