I could write a book about this stuff and link you to countless references but my key message is this. The accident would have been
less likely to have occurred if Virgin used Engineers to push the plane out. Forget your "
how do you know that" response, I said less likely. This is because Engineers are more likely to be vastly more experienced than a baggage handler on the many aspects of the tarmac operation. That is why the limits and dangers are listed in Maintenance Manuals.
Baggage Handlers can be thrust into the headset role after only a few weeks. Many of them come and go and view the job as a transitional thing until they settle on a career. Some stay in Ramp and are great guys but their role is not one where problem solving is integral to what they do. It is more a production line mentality. Engineers are wired differently and usually err on the side of caution. It's just the way it is on Commercial Ramps. Your Navy or RAAF analogy is not the same, you don't have casual labour.
ISTM that there is a degree of job preservation going on here by those whose profession is to maintain the machines: not move them around the tarmac.
Your question is embedded with the incorrect assumption that it is not an Engineers job to "
move them around the tarmac". Like I said it is in our manuals in controlled versions for a reason. It is part of our profession.
Job protection? Well that is the result of what I am advocating. Its not wrong for me to do that. If they were to replace a Pilot, Policeman, Doctor, Garbo, Cook, Train Driver or Ambo with another person without the appropriate skills, training or experience to do a job and it had such a similar dangerous or expensive outcome, you would hear the same from them. You would also hear from managers in those industries defending their cost cutting decisions.
Maybe a proper result would be to make the rampy's job one that is properly recognised and duly rewarded? After all, they are responsible for moving multi million $$$ assets.
This suggestion would also reduce the likelihood of an accident. I suspect it would be cheaper to use Engineers though, they are on the tarmac anyway.