blind pew,
And there was me, thinking that it was only the RAF who cocked it up on a grand scale ! I had implicit trust in our civil airlines, believing that all the maintenance was perfect and that the crews were truly the
Übermensch of whom you speak.
And now you tell me:
" ..his flat mate had selected Land Flap instead of Flap Up at the cutback point..." (not really the ideal thing in the circumstances). I think I'll "let the Train take the Strain" from now on (only metaphorically, as I am unlikely to venture very far nowadays). In any case, I always said to myself "If I'm to get killed flying, I'd much prefer it to be my own fault rather than that of some wild youth who should never have been on a Flight Deck in the first place".
I like the sound of "corporate amnesia" (must remember that !). There is plenty of it about. Harks back to the old definition of a Corporation: ("That which has no body to be kicked and no soul to be damned").
And I know all too well the folly of assuming "the gauge" (or whatever) "must be faulty - everything's all right, really". Nearly cost me my life one day (you should always assume the worst, and act accordingly !)
Danny.