Quote:
Also, let's not be too harsh on the pilot for arriving with a small amount of fuel on board. I seem to remember from the original AAIB report on this incident that the aircraft operators put some degree of pressure on pilots not to return the aircraft with too much fuel on board, so that the aircraft could if necessary take a full passenger load on its next flight. That doesn't excuse the error completely of course, but it is perhaps a mitigating factor.
What the AAIB actually said was
He was also aware that G-OMAR was occasionally used for charter flights and that in order to avoid potential weight problems the aircraft operator had an unwritten policy that the aircraft should not be returned with very high residual fuel loads.
Now IMHO coming back with 60 minutes fuel remaining for example does not represent a 'high residual fuel load'. In any case if on the next future flight the aircraft weight allowed no more than 60 minutes of fuel to be loaded, the aircraft is effectively useless. No need to run it so close.