Thousands of times I have asked myself "why and how?" the why has been the hardest part to deal with,the how cannot be changed. Yes the person we have been talking about was a friend,and I am a little set in my thoughts as I have had all this time to think and try to rationalise the reasons.
I feel it important to have my say too.
The why?
well Mr Hat made a good point when he spoke of the childhood antics and the BMX...the child never leaves us,that unrestrainable and invinceable part of our makeup..we are all children that have been told to grow up.Remember back to your BMX tricks,then onto the skateboard,then onto who had notched up the most sexual experiences by age 18,then onto who can drink the most shots...did we do all of this for ourselves? god no..or maybe to impress the mates? its a mix of our culture,the kid in us that doesnt grow up and the need to be accepted by our peers.
I realise that my friend did something silly,but I cant blame him as a person for that and call him a fool,he didnt go up that day to kill himself,he loved his life too much and he had so much of it to give.
It has however brought a lot of things to light,that should be discussed and taken seriously for someone elses sake.
Why was the maintenance release not signed for 2 days? was it a normal practice or was there a legitiment reason from the pilots to not want to sign it? were they in fear of grounding an aircraft at such a remote location without a maintenance facility within cooeee? would they have to walk hot coals?
The wages? they were paid a "small retainer" and then by the hour for flying.."enough to survive" in the words of the boss....I didnt see a mention that out of this they were then charged rent for the "substandard conditions" and that they also had to sell cigarettes to the locals to have enough to make it survivable.
It was well known what goes on up there and considering every pilot I have met from there is knowledable in the fact, before and after, I find it hard to beleive that the owners were not aware.Sure they all have a choice,they didnt need to accept the job but the only choice they made was to live there and put up with it for a short period of time,just enough to gain the hours to move on.
There was a hypothetical situation mentioned about a report coming onto a chief pilots desk about suspicions of low flying and beat ups,the boss would give the pilot a verbal thrashing and possible release of employment...well I dont beleive that it would be the unfair dismissal they would be worried about,sure it would cost a bit but nothing compared to the pilot making phone calls to the authority about aircraft maintenance and employment expectations...this is where the culture breeding is starting.
We have a pilot who is underpaid,needing those first hours to get the hell out of there,living on cheap food,living no better than the locals,very little respect for the owners system of operation and we expect him to stay within the regulations and be responsible and respectful? that would not make him human would it? disrespect breeds disrespect..... do you think he needs better training or education? no he needs to feel respected not used,needs to be flying safe machines,needs to be given the responsibility that if he is not happy with the aircraft it doesnt fly....this is a breeding ground for this cowboy culture and if anyone who had been there both past and present were to speak they would only say they were grateful for enough hours to get away from the whole scene...that's why they dont have pilots who are in senior years there with more experience.
Gaunty talked about the straw that broke the camels back..I am not saying this had anything to do with it but it is a concern for the others still flying...these machines have thousands of hours on them,and being that Rob was not the only one that ever did this you have to ask yourself.."how many times can this machine do this before something in the airframe goes snap?"..it can happen definitely and it will happen if it continues to be the culture..think about the person that has to fill your shoes next round,when you are eating prawns and they are eating pasta.
At the time of the accident many pilots in the said admitted to doing the same,and it was mentioned in the inquest....not a single one was given marching orders..
I agree with Dog One..CASA does need to be more than a paper tiger,I know they need hard evidence but what harder evidence do they need than a deceased person before there are controls put into place to stop the culture breeding..the only way to stop the culture is from the top,the operators not the pilots,it follows the chain.There is not one person in the company I am employed that would ever do anything similar,the sheer fact that it would be dismissal,no question about that breeds a culture of safe flying.
When you have circumstances like this there are always going to be inquests involving the family,"every avenue will be persued to attribute blame,the operator,the equipment,the standard of maintenace,lack of direct supervision and anything else to deflect blame"...and why? because without concerns and questionabiltiy about all the above there wouldnt be one,and they have the right!
I challenge every one of you who find this out of line to sit for 2 years, just like this family has had to, and think about why the child you gave birth to and loved unconditionally is no longer with you...you'd be asking questions too..