but for this specific case fact overcomes theory
I'm afraid it doesn't. SOPs were regularly disregarded, and this was the "Normalisation of Deviance". Saying that all the others had severe clear VMC for the descent doesn't cut it, because at what point below severe clear does it then require compliance with the SOP? Even with the severe clear they busted the 6,000 which was claimed to be the minimum. Why was that? Because Wilson had briefed it was OK?
In that case, would the company be at fault? perhaps morally, but they never actually broke the law, the driver did.
In this case the company advertised the fact that they were not complying with SOP by letter dropping almost every residence in the country, on top of newspaper and TV articles. Why did neither the regulator nor the airline bring down the hammer on these practices? By their very failure to act they become complicit, the executive (eg chief pilot) is responsible for what the crews get up to by maintaining standards. Maintaining standards was not exercised by the executive. To that extent, not being a lawyer, I consider personally that they failed in their duty of care to their customers, and hence are liable.
You, and many others use the argument they were inexperienced in Antarctic flying, well surely that would be a very good reason for sticking to the rules
Why the crew did what they did we will never know, and can only surmise. The crews had received no training in polar operations, and the problem becomes one of you don't know what you don't know. So what did the crew know?
No body had bothered with a descent in accordance with SOP.
No body complied with the 6,000 supposed rule.
McMurdo is socked in, but we have an area right here with VMC conditions and extremely good surface definition - broken ice floes in the water.
Commercial pressure to supply the customers that which they had paid for. Customers are not going to be too happy to arrive back in NZ having seen only clouds, and the airline ain't going to offer a refund.
From the luxury of our armchairs we can quarterback until the cows come home, but the people up front on the day were human, and beset with all the frailties present in humans. The task is to take the lessons of what went wrong, and remove those slices of cheese, with out apportioning blame.