Use of the vest in apron areas

[Helen49]

There are countless safety devices which are not guaranteed to prevent accidents but are major contributors to safety.

Training pilots to fly aircraft will not prevent accidents, as history has shown, but training will make a significant contribution towards accident prevention. All the procedures, yellow lines, red lights and signposts won’t stop a runway incursion but they will assist greatly. Red traffic lights do not prevent vehicles crossing road junctions, but they are a useful aid to that end. Warnings on many appliances together with safety devices etc are there to aid the prevention of accidents but they will not automatically do so.

Similarly hi-visibility clothing will not prevent you from being knocked down by a vehicle but worn correctly and in a clean condition will enable vehicle and aircraft operators to see you which will in turn help to prevent a collision. However, as with all safety procedures, equipment and training there are always holes in the Swiss cheese waiting to line up.

Man has moved on significantly since the Piltdown era and that progress has been enhanced greatly by attention to matters affecting safety. History tells of the horrendous industrial accidents in bygone days, the death rates in many walks of life was scandalous. In aviation the number of accidents was massive world wide. Today we live in a much safer industrial world largely thanks to the ‘half-wits’ who have striven to make this happen by providing training, procedures, and equipment and of course it has the fancy name of Safety Management.

I do find the reference to the ‘mentally retarded’ a deeply offensive description. Incidentally the wearing of a hi-visibilty jacket will assist any passing crocodile to see you, with the possibility of your demise.