Sir - I have followed with interest recent reports concerning the circumstances surrounding the Chinook accident on the Mull of Kintyre.
I read the report of the Board of Inquiry. The findings are unsurprising, if not spectacularly inconclusive. Without the benefits of reports from survivors, eye witnesses, radar traces, radio transmissions, flight-data recorders, cockpit-voice recorders, the true cause of the accident will never be known.
Officially, the Board concluded that the handling pilot could not be criticised. It also said that, "...based on the available evidence, it would be incorrect to criticise the non-handling pilot for human failings", as it was not possible to determine the sequence of events which led to the accident. After extensive consultation, however, the Board went on to find both pilots negligent to a gross degree.
That finding disturbs many serving Royal Air Force pilots, who cannot speak publicly. Although the cause of the accident might be seen as "pilot error by default", no cause was positively identified (although it is accepted that humans make mistakes.)
What pressures were brought to bear to bring such a high-profile case to such a tidy conclusion?
Capt A R H FAIRCHILD
Richmond, Yorkshire, UK
Source: Flight International
