Are you an instructor or just a CPL Homesick-Angel? 10 years hey...? I guess that makes you qualified to offer such sound advice. I know people that have been flying for 40+ years and they still say that they are learning every time they take to the sky. Good on you for working it all out in only 10 years.
So you weren't there on the day and you offer this advice based on rumours of people that were on the ground?
Was it VFR at YMMB, Special VFR or IFR only? You are suggesting that it was unsuitable for VFR... however if so, why / how did they get out of Moorabbin in the first place? SVFR is available but only if it's still VFR conditions. Should the tower have stopped them? How does a VFR aircraft take off from a controlled aerodrome in conditions that are unsuitable for VFR (which is what you are saying)?
I read your post like you were there, or you saw the aircraft crash, you know the experience and currency of the pilots, you are a trained aircraft crash investigator, you are an accomplished instructor and IFR pilot and you know exactly what happened... which one is it?
Even the most junior instructor who has worked for a year or two has more currency and understanding of the local area and wx than you. You don't know ****.
You mean the guys that rarely leave the training area and if they do it's only in CAVOK on a nav with student? No wonder they are "safer."
Of course, IFR rated pilots never crash do they???
Every rumour I was told is true.
This is pretty much the biggest waste of life I've seen in 10 years in the game because of how easy this one was to avoid.
WTF they thought they were doing is beyond me. I know of 15 thousand hour pilots who were sitting on the ground because it was unsuitable for VFR and only a handful of IFR were getting out and doing what they needed.
Here's a few messages out for the PPL /private flying community out there.
1. You are a PPL. Even if you've been flying for 20 years it doesn't mean **** unless you are current and fly weekly at least in a range of conditions.
2. You are not beyond the laws and consequences of flaunting them or pushing them.
3. Statistics show you are the most unsafe people in the sky. That should be a trigger for you to take great care.
4. Ask , ask and then ask again. Even the most junior instructor who has worked for a year or two has more currency and understanding of the local area and wx than you. You don't know ****. See point 3 for proof. Go look at the stats. See how many instructors die vs you guys. They work under safety frameworks you have no idea of.
5. If you wanna play with the big boys in the soup then take it seriously and get an IFR rating, keep it current and tread with absolute care. If it runs out, YOU ARE NOT suitable for IMC.
6. People will take more risks in groups than alone. I wonder if any single pilot on board would have gone alone, and gone if others hadn't tried. The worst of it had appeared to pass , but a simple call would have shown them this was a false dawn ... See next point.
7. RING THE MET PEOPLE . There is a number at the end of the ARFOR. They are Yoda like and have far more current modelling than all but the latest TAFS.
8. If you see people doing dumb sh1t report them or if they are close pull them aside quietly and have a word. They may not like it but stiff.
Take care.