Originally Posted by
Smilin_Ed
Someone please correct me, but didn't they notice a difference between the captain's and the FO's airspeed indicators on take off roll but continued anyway?
Yes, they did. The investigators' assertion was that having been away from home for several weeks while Birgenair tried to arrange a charter to get them home, the crew succumbed to "get-there-itis" and ignored a potentially dangerous discrepancy.
In fact the F/O's indicator was right all along, as was the standby - unfortunately the Captain assumed that because of the overspeed warning that the F/O's ASI was also incorrect, as it was showing a normal speed range (which in fact was correct). Boeing later retrofitted an Air Data Select switch to resolve the issue with the warnings and the autopilot.