In every profession in every culture there will always be unbalanced individuals who fool all the behavioural experts and their peers - often for years before either snapping in an instant, or executing a long term plan.
Who among us has not met at least one pilot we thought a bit wacko, or simply down in the dumps, but never did anything about it? If a colleague shows for duty reeking of booze, it's easy enough to identify and to not report it would be criminally negligent. But wacko or depressed? If the trick cyclists can so often miss it, what are our chances of recognising an impending problem?
The ultimate solution is the pilotless airliner. We already have the technology to do it.
Assign four or five geeks to control each aircraft to prevent any one geek from playing silly buggers with the remote. Put them in a concrete bunker to keep the bad guys out.
Compared with flying on certain carriers in certain parts of the world, I would feel a lot safer in a properly designed and operated drone. Recent accidents where pilots are implicated can only accelerate development and eventual public acceptance of remotely controlled flight. It will never be 100% foolproof but give it another 25 years and it will be sufficiently safe to make today's safety statistics look fairly ordinary.
In the short term, get rid of that dangerous door lock. El Al and Iran Air were at least two airlines exposed to a terrorist risk long before 9/11 and their preventative measures were extremely effective. It provided gainful employment for large gentlemen wearing bulky suits strategically seated around the cabin.
It would have the added advantage of curbing passenger rage and bogans behaving badly, too.
Last edited by Mach E Avelli; 28th Mar 2015 at 07:01.