BOAC, I agree with you that this is not an obvious discussion and I hope that the way I put forward things in my post reflects my understanding of the delicacy. I just could not help wondering.
I trust however that this will be addressed in the investigation of the DSB. Indeed in the prelim report it is stated that after the technical investigation they will concentrate on investigating the management of the crisis operations following the crash and what can be learnt from that.
Thanks,
Dutch