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US investigators have determined that ground staff covered up an accident in which a vehicle damaged a McDonnell Douglas DC-9's fuselage, and allowed the......

Author: David Kaminski-Morrow

Date: 15 December 2008

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 Speaks volumes about Air Wisonsin's safety culture...

What an extraordinary gutless, cowardly example of criminal behaviour by these personnel. One hopes that they are black-listed from ever being permitted to work with aircraft ever again. I also hope that they are charged by the FAA. I wonder also, however, whether there may be a climate of fear within the culture of the operator? I do not know the time-line of the event with respect that the damage was not detected during a final walk-around exterior inspection by one of the pilots or the ramp engineer?

Either the responsible individuals had no understanding of the potential catastrophic consequencies of the damage inflicted on the aircraft , or they feared so much for their jobs that they said nothing. Aircraft damage during loading and unloading is a regular event .Ask any airline structures engineer. The airlines I have worked for have put big efforts into reducing it through training and procedures. I would suggest that during the pre flight walk around loading is still taking place, as often cargo doors get closed at the last moment particularly on todays very short turnarounds. The loading equipment may well have hidden the damage if it was still in use. The big question here is loader education and the culture of employer . One hopes it would not be of a nature, that the employees would endanger an aircraft, its crew and passengers rather than say something. In this case they clearly did.

 Although it is reprehensible, what else do we expect from some poor guy earning $8.75 an hour?  (and btw, I sit up front).......It is the McDonalds syndrome, pay people little, you aren't gonna get much.......I do a walkaround immediately prior to departure just because of this......

Thanks chaps. I totally deplore the mean-minded bean-counters who congratulate themselves for driving real wages down. But as long as we can't fix that problem and improve the training aspects, somebody who actually knows what they are looking for, MUST externally inspect the aircraft AFTER all the plethora of servicing and supply vehicles are clear of the airframe and engines. It MUST be a SOP. No ifs, no buts....just DO it!