The report gives a lot of insight on the state of affairs at the Polish Air Force:
- the plane didn't have a valid C of A - so they took one from another airframe,
- the PIC was not current on his IMC landings - so he logged a near CAVOK landing as IMC,
- the PIC was apparently undergoing training at LOT - but his logbook shows he was in fact flying at the same time (or perhaps it is the logbook that is incorrect?).
- they didn't have an up to date FCOM,
- they didn't have 4 crew SOP,
Maybe these were not significant factors, but I think they show the attitude that prevailed. This approach is still very typical of many things run by the government in Poland. Disregard the rules - how likely is it you'll get caught?
The communication between the Tu and the Yak-40 - I would not be surprised if there was more than meets the eye there.
One thing makes me wonder about the report though - the Russians are very scrupulous in quoting the reference and date of all documents received from the Polish side regarding the flight prep - with the exception of the refulsal to have the navigator-leader. When did the Poles refuse? How was this communicated?
Regards,
Golf-Sierra
/Polish expat/