Originally Posted by
LandIT
Why not meaningful preparations and planning for the Presidential visit?
Poles were offered other nearby airports (Moscow and Minsk) with ILS and controllers speaking English. But that Polish president swore to never put his foot in Moscow and was in bad relations with president of Belarus (Minsk is the capital of Belarus). So, the president insisted on Smolensk despite warnings that the airport hasn't ILS and is almost defunct.
Originally Posted by
LandIT
Why no current approach charts from the Russians, for a Presidential visit?
The chart they were given the previous time is still correct for the only remaining landing course.
Originally Posted by
LandIT
Why did the controller called down the glide slope as if it was OK?
Perhaps because of very old imperfect radar, and not very experienced controller who assumed that the presidential aircraft had much better equipment and competent crew, not these hackworkers. Also, have in mind that that was a hostile visit: to make a political show blaming and offending Russians.
Originally Posted by
LandIT
Why has the airfield trees that were too high?
Did it really matter? Poles want to invent excuses to blame somebody other than themselves.
Originally Posted by
LandIT
Why weren't the approach lights set up to regulations.
Vandalized by local population (the airport is inside Smolensk city, the lights are near a city street, outside airport border). Not repaired because of lack of funds. In that fog the crew couldn't see the lights even if they'd work OK.
Originally Posted by
LandIT
Why no real preparations in case anything went wrong, for a Presidential visit?
The visit was hostile and unwanted.
Originally Posted by
LandIT
Why was there no designated alternate airport announced and planned?
The crew announced Minsk and Vitebsk as alternates when asked by the controller. But the president didn't choose the alternate. Polish military crews serving VIPs had unwritten rule that the main passenger chooses the alternate. The president visited the cockpit shortly before landing in order to pressure the crew to land - pure politics (this Polish committee took care to not publish the
whole transcript from the sound recorder). Then the drunk chief of air force remained in the cockpit until the crash.
Originally Posted by
LandIT
Are we really convinced the rescue services were able to attend promptly.
May be no. But that was a hostile visit.
Originally Posted by
LandIT
Are we really convinced the crash investigation was proper, for a Presidential visit?
Poles desperately want to blame anybody but themselves. A Russian saying: "give them a finger, they'll chew off the whole arm". The Russian report tried to absolve the controller and radar technicians, the Polish report tries to absolve the president, the airforce chief and Americans who (in order to force users to buy supplemented airport database periodically) made manual addition to airport database in TAWS impossible, so false alarms from TAWS were guaranteed in that airport and thus ignored (wolf, wolf!).
Poles complain that they weren't given Russian military regulations and weren't allowed to participate in tests (with a Russian military test aircraft) of the landing radar, NDBs and other airport radio equipment. But have in mind that Poland deserted the military alliance with Russia and joined the adversary NATO. So, anything related to military is considered secret from the deserter and NATO member, even if just in spite. The airport is at least in part military, the controller crew military.
That Polish president pressed the crew to land because he was late to the political show at the graveyard in Katyn, i.e. he literally was in a hurry to the cemetry.