Ok, I'm actually getting a bit angry now with all this 'sincerest condolences to the crew' posts. From a safety point of view, I'm concerned that every time BA have an incident, everyone comes rushing to say 'mistakes happen', 'sympathies for the crew'. That worries me. This is a mistake that could kill someone, and could well have killed more than Asiana. Asiana won't fly again, are you saying this guy should just because he was lucky? Yes people make mistakes,but what if a mistake is a reflection of a personality trait that could cause a bigger problem later? That's why sometimes people should be fired for mistakes. Just as any normal person is if they do something that shows they might do something that kills people in the course of their job. This person would have killed people if the top floor had had people. Killedd. Stop being sociopaths and see that's actually pretty serious. If your family were there and this guy killed them, would you be so generous?
Some people have actually been injured, maybe that's where your condolences should lie. People probably a lot poorer and with less people to stand up for them than the cockpit crew - if their injuries were to stop them working for instance it could mean serious hardship. I doubt the pilots have to worry about that. As I said, if anyone had been on that top floor they'd be DEAD. I've seen people say this has been sensationalised, on another forum someone got upset because a paper described it as a 'crash' into a building. You know what, if a bus hits a bridge, it's a crash, if a train slowly bumps another, it's described as a crash. And if a bus driver comes off the road and hits a building, without another vehicle interfering, he gets sacked. I'm tired of pilots making excuses. Pilots get paid much more than bus or train drivers (BA ones at least) because they have RESPONSIBILITY. Yes BA pilots, you are well paid, and with that expected not to demolish buildings, if you don't like being held responsible for nearly killing people, and expect to be able to do it and keep your job, get another job. Yes, we need a positive safety culture, but that doesn't mean a pilot can get away with anything.
I wouldn't judge this case, but were it for the cowling incident, when all the old boys told us how hard it is to check the latches, how time pressure meant they couldn't fit in a proper walk around, and apparently it's beyond a BA pilot to bend down. I've been on several A320s since and seen the captain bend down and check the latches, and it took all of 1 second. Maybe they have stronger trousers.
Sorry, but after seeing the difference in the reaction after the Asiana crash, I find it upsetting, as a Brit born and bred, to see the obvious racism/looking after our own in the reactions.
Last edited by neila83; 24th Dec 2013 at 00:03.