OK, my 2 cents worth. AF A380 pilots stuffed up; they were taxiing a really heavy plane with a huge amount of momentum at a reasonable speed for the conditions. It was a mistake any of us could have made; imho the AF and F/O skipper are going to be held responsible with the necessary penalties and a big lesson learnt. AF will probably take into account the mitigating circumstances which certainly favour a more lenient view to the error.
In the dark environment, it was difficult to make out the position of the RJ. What more with the myriad of flashing beacons from other planes and ground vehicles in the vicinity.
Have anyone operated into LAX lately during misty/foggy night hours? The plethora of flashing red and amber lights with ground vehicles darting around are sure enough to put one into a stroboscopic induced syncope. Add this to the non stop chatter on ground frequency with the F/O having to contact ramp tower on another, the overload of one's visual and aural senses together with the need to navigate the complex taxiway system due to sporadic partial closures of certain taxiways, can truly be overwhelming. I ain't a skygod, it is sure taxing for an average pilot.
Last edited by OKhalsa; 30th Apr 2011 at 01:41.