Rottenray, if you want any credibility on this board, don't compare the job to driving a bus. For one, it's insulting and two, it shows how little you know about the job and the profession as a whole. I know you are not a frequent flier and perhaps you should remember that before you judge these guys.
Sorry but I can't stand when industry outsiders start judging pilots whenever something hits the media. Yeah, I think these guys messed up, but I guarantee they wouldn't ever do it again.
Let me just mention that no one was hurt or even in danger for that matter, and everyone got safely to the destination. I don't know the fuel status but the otherside of the coin is not the aircraft falling out of the sky. If they had burned too much fuel, they simply would have diverted to another airport, fueled up and gone back. Also, it's not as if the plane was out of control. It was on auto pilot. It was flying in the exact same manner as every other flight on every other airline in the world. If something had gone wrong, they would have been alerted. So by your definition, they did what they were paid to do. Did they do it as well as they could have? Obviously not. But to use your bus driver analogy, they missed an exit, they didn't run off a cliff.
Don't misunderstand me, I am not defending these guys but I am also not picking up stones to throw. Yes, they should have been watching the screens and listening to the radio, but (read my previous post on this thread) it may not be that simple. What bothers me is the media fueled sensationalism that accompanies anything with aviation. This shouldn't even be a story. People didn't almost die. There should be discipline but it should be internal and confidential.
All this story accomplishes is to undermine the public's confidence in the industry by inviting anyone who has ever seen a plane to comment and to publicly execute the long careers of two men (human beings) who had a lapse in judgment that didn't directly endanger anyone.
As for all of you self righteous judgmental pilots out there, this is an anonymous board so no points for a$$ kissing You aren't making yourself look better to anyone.
Where was the outrage and news on this one?
YouTube - China Airlines 737-800 nearly overshoots runway at takeoff