Is the CAA Press Release on the web?? I could not find it on the CAA website. Perhaps they are too ashamed to make their press release public ?
I can only add to the other comments here, that having read the AAIB report carefully, it seems to be up to their normal high standard. The content of the report itself seems to me to demonstrate that the AAIB have a good grasp of the issues. To dismiss the AAIB recommendations in such a way seems pretty cavalier - although I have not been able to read the Press Releasee directly of course!
If you realised you were on a very sticky wicket this is the sort of garbage, spun response that might be generated. Their hope must be that it will go away if they keep fairly quiet about it. There are loads of routine examples of the CAA engaging in back-covering exercises - avoiding their own liability (i.e. taking responsibility for nothing)
Certainly my confidence in the engineering system that we as pilots all rely upon is undermined by looking at this report. Obviously, the actions of the engineer are worrying, but far more so is the attitude of the CAA, and their inadequate systems.
I have been musing about what we could do about it. The only thing that might just make the CAA reconsider their position would be if politicians got involved. I may be unduly cynical about politicians, but I doubt that they would be much interested, unless they saw the connection to some big fixed wing accident (i.e. a threat to lots of non-aviating voters).
Does anyone have any ideas??