Lonewolf:
There was no lie, and this is exactly what I mean. Maybe you didn't see the posts, but pilots earlier were quite direct in saying people on the ground should not factor into their decision at all. And seemed quite proud in saying it. That's the kind of attitude we don't need in passenger transport. An AAIB report has been quoted saying that they think it matters and still these guys think they know better, that is what bothers me. Of course if you're on 3 mile final from Heathrow you are commited but if you have time to make a decision that means not flying a plane dropping bits over a city, that makes sense no? Even if this plane wasn't about to fall to the ground, they were told bits were falling off it, which makes me wonder if they were too 'SOP' oriented. Why is this kind of not even particularly creative thinking so sneered at? Some humbleness would be good to see, particularly from those who love to condescend to other airlines.
It seems to me these guys are getting a lot of slack because of who they fly for. the walkaround is part of their job. People have claimed every pilot goes into work wanting to be a professional, that they couldn't possibly have screwed up by anything other than the system. I contest that like any profession, there are gifted, average, bad, hard working, and lazy pilots. Some maybe just don't take the walkaround seriously. If that is the case, yes we need to reform the system, but I don't think blaming someone in a safety critical position for not taking it seriously is unfair? Train drivers who go through red lights and kill people are prosecuted, truck drivers who crash into trains are prosecuted, why do pilots think they are above the law? If someone is negligent about this, what else might they be negligent about? Are people really saying there is no-one in a cockpit who shouldn't be there?