"The only obvious reasons are incredibly poor training or mental aberation."
Or tunnel vision, or cultural conditioning, or simple anger, or ... You need to cast your net a bit wider if you truly want to examine the issues objectively.
The captain wasn't the only link in this disastrous chain, but he was plainly the person with the final authority and responsibility for the safe conduct of the flight. Before the flight he would have worn both of those as badges of honour, as we all do.
In the absence of causal factors outside the pilot's knowledge and control, the ultimate responsibility rests in the same place as the ultimate authority, as it must.
Last edited by Unhinged; 28th Apr 2009 at 02:22.