Post 742: And as for why the pilot may have elected to go to Battersea rather than return to Redhill, or even take off at all in the first place, ask yourselves what information that is in the preliminary AAIB report can be independently verified by them and proven to be true? What information cannot be independently proven to be true? What has been merely assumed to be accurate?
Now ask yourselves why a signed statement has been submitted to the AAIB from someone (a professional pilot) who spoke to the pilot that morning about that specific flight (not Witness A) but is not mentioned in the AAIB report or subsequently? This post is highly likely to be removed by the Mods because of potential libel difficulties if this post elaborates any further.
What is the overriding contributory factor of HEMS accidents in the USA?
Post 771: I'd love to spell it out better but I cannot. Read post 742 as to why.
How does one prove that something actually took place? You need an independent witness(es) or some form of independent corroboration.
For the sake of argument, let's define independent as meaning free from self-interest and being completely unconnected with and unconcerned by the outcome of the attempted proof.
For example, weather? Yep, corroborated by independent METARs, photographic evidence, multiple witnesses at the scene. (I suppose, philosophically speaking, we cannot state categorically exactly what the weather was at the exact time of the incident at the exact spot where the impact occurred [in 3D space] but we can get pretty damn close).
What other elements of the AAIB initial report are being taken in this thread to be statements of incontrovertible fact when in fact they are not?
OK, I'm barking - not sure if it's up the right tree though...
I wouldn't want to speculate on any allegedly unpublished telephone conversations and I share your concern re libel, etc. but
If PB was under pressure to proceed with the flight, it would have surely come from only one or more of three sources:
- The client
- The operator
- Himself
We don't know what was said during any other alleged phone calls, but I don't see any particular pressure being put on the pilot in the texts. I did wonder why he would elect to divert to a murky Batts when that's hardly convenient for the client and there's clear blue sky 10 mins down the road at Redhill... However, if he had been pressurised into completing the job by 1) or 2), it was still PB's sole responsibility as PIC to say NO, regardless of the commercial consequences. Would he really have put himself in that situation to try and save his flight to the north of England? Possibly.
What is this alleged mystery letter and what elucidating information is it alleged to contain?
