I have no problem with the capabilities of the French to investigate air crashes, but I do have a concern about their willingness to do a thorough investigation in the face of any political pressures that may be brought to bear by a foreign government (that of Malaysia, for example).
I ponder this because this is such a murky event and I strongly suspect there might be considerable motivation by some in the Malaysian government to keep as much of this in the dark as possible. On the other side of the coin, I suspect the Chinese government would really like to see as much information come to light as possible. After all, they lost the greatest number of citizens in the accident. The Australians also would like to see the accident fully investigated and reesolved.
The French BEA seem to have done a reasonable job with AF447, but investigation of the Tu-144 crash at the Paris Air Show was controversial because of political pressure brought to bear by the Soviet Union to minimise damage to the reputation of the aircraft itself and to find a cause which was acceptable to the French, the Soviets, and the rest of the world in general. A "tainted" investigation is as bad as no investigation at all.
I also assume that, in the event of major sections of the airframe eventually being recovered, these would also have to be handed over to the French for analysis. The cost of transporting these items from the recovery position (i.e. Indian Ocean) to France would be fairly considerable. Would the French have to bear these costs as well? Just who is going to pay for whatever work has to be done from here on until the matter is finally laid to rest, in whatever state it is at the time?
I am also assuming (optimistically, perhaps) the BEA will be asking Boeing for assistance, as Boeing have a considerable amount of skin in this game.
The investigation has to be done, but it also has to be seen to be done.
Last edited by criticalmass; 1st Aug 2015 at 00:25.