Caz
It was not that simple.
Look at the timing – the other crews were not aware of the change until the day before yet Flt Lt Tapper must have had some realistic time for him to have thought a request for a MK1 could be accommodated.
Also, someone on this thread (who appeared to have had some standing/cred) let it slip some time back that there had been an intention to use a Chinook some weeks before the event.
The officer at the level above Flt Lt Tapper who oversaw the planning, etc would have been a useful witness at at least one of the inquiries, one would have thought.
Tec
Thanks for the example regarding CAR – I would like to add that it was very much a self contained system and that the first batch delivered were in a “palletised” form such that the on-board component could be easily moved between Chinook MK2s. It was intrinsically accurate such that it worked accurately or it did not work at all – you plugged it in and if readings were apparently of the right order then it could safely be assumed that they were accurate (more accurate than radar in range and +/-4deg in bearing with the integral UHF antennae acting as a direction finder).