Princess Lala, you asked the question, so what do you think of the answers? You could perhaps suggest to your boss that it might be as well to wait for Lord Philip to present his report later in the year, to get a real take on "where now?" for UK Military Airworthiness. There again you might just decide to go ahead and make it all up as you mentioned. In which case why not go for the totally off the wall solution that will have your boss's jaws agape with incredulity? Not without risk for you of course, but airworthiness is a poison chalice for anyone employed in the MOD or HM Forces right now, so why not suggest that the solution could be to move UK Military Airworthiness Provision and UK Military Air Accident Investigation outside of those organisations to independent and separate authorities? They could be called something like the MAA and the MAAIB for example. They already exist? Maybe, but they are not separate and independent of the MOD, or even of each other, are they? No, really, they are not, and that is the problem. The fundamental reason for the Mull Chinook, the Iraq Hercules, and the Afghanistan Nimrod tragedies as well as host of other Airworthiness Related Fatal Air Accidents is that the Military Operator, Regulator and Investigator are one and the same, aka the MOD. It is not by chance that they are independent and separate in civil aviation but of necessity. That necessity extends likewise to military aviation.
Well there you are, Princess. Unacceptable, impossible and unworkable no doubt, but the incestuous setup that presently exists does not work and it kills, as we all know.
Feeling lucky? Then go for the unmentionable, independence! See where it got that nice Mr Salmon!
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