UPS cargo crash near Birmingham AL

[Agnostique75]

Pride and prejudice

This thread has been, from start, characterised by a very cautious and balanced approach from most PPrune contributors. Many factors, other than pilot performance, have been put forward and discussed: mechanical/technical failure, optical illusion, inaccuracy/imprecision of the charts, plane performance, bird strikes, the potential contribution of fatigue etc…

This seems, to me, the right and positive way to approach any accident. I’ll refrain from using the much tainted terms of “fair and balanced”, but that’s the overall spirit. Such restraint has also characterised the “Southwest KLGA gear collapse” thread, with a very neutral title and, again, a rather impartial approach.

However, this was not the case with the “Asiana flight crash at San Francisco” thread, which from the onset was plagued with a number of downright xenophobic comments and frequent, broad and negative characterisation of “Asian” pilots. This reveals, by the way, a deep lack of knowledge: There are no more “Asian” pilots than “African” pilots, but that’s besides my point here.

I am not suggesting that factors such as culture, whether induced by nationality or fostered inside a given company, should not be examined during any in-depth investigation. But they cannot serve as an initial, catch-all “explanation”. Sadly and ironically, this prejudiced approach was mainly expressed bluntly by some members posting from the United States, the handful of usual offenders.

I guess that what I’m trying to say, along with several other members, is that the three events present one commonality: all three flights ended up with an accident, of a severe and potentially life threatening nature. It would be refreshing to see the same cautious and balanced approach taken in all three cases, without the level of prejudice expressed by some.

But it’s just a wish…

A.