It doesn't matter a flying *** what you think, know, understand.
It is what the public thinks!!! NOT YOU!!!!
Sunfish is so right it's not funny! Its all about public perception.
Hmm ... the difference I see is
Managment deal in spin, general fluffing, and, well, bull****e each and every single day. To their managers, to employees, to the media.
Pilots and Engineers on the other hand only work in fact while on the job.
Think about this ... If you were too high and too fast on approach no amount of spin is going to fix it right? Because anything you say will get shot down. Its all about the hard facts.
Whereas the line from management might go something like "management would not accept they were too high and denied they were too fast. In fact we carried the extra height and speed incase we needed to make a missed approach which is exactly what we ended up doing. All involved Management should now pat themselves on the back for such great foresight."
Pilots and engineers need to start thinking in this way when talking to the media!!! Whenever I see a line quoted from some AIPA rep I literally cringe.
Now I guess anyone these days can take out a half page space in the major newpapers? What could you do with this space?
What about reminding everyone of certain problems Qantas have had with their aircraft since outsourcing maintenance overseas. Such as
The oxygen bottle explosion on the 747, and
The QF32 engine explosion
Well Mr and Mrs General Public ... guess what?! Qantas now wish to outsource the pilots too
What do you think would have been the outcome of QF32 if an outsourced Indian pilot with a fake licence and a 200 hour cadet pilot had been at the controls?!
Would you let your family fly the "new" Qantas?