blacksheep
As an ex line engineer i understand the nature of the deferred defect and the use of the MEL to keep aircraft flying but the conversation that I overheard in the pub seemed to go a little further than a backlog of "niff -naff and triva" defects.
The whole thrust of the conversation was that the VC10 was simply "worn out" and without large amounts of money time and effort spent the situation would only get worse.