Joy at direct hit turns to horror

[Fonceai]

Not at all.

No one made him "pull the trigger".

But if he had doubts, and was reassured by ground control, is that still his fault?

I'm willing to bet that pilots have doubts all the time, as well as anyone in the position to pull a trigger and end a life.

What makes a difference is that final step to decide that the reassuring voice providing you with intelligence is correct, and that that voice is correct.

Pilots put a great deal of trust in ground control, and that trust was misplaced, in this case.

But you don't fault the pilot for trusting ground control. That's what he is trained and required to do.

[Zeebadee]

Quote by: Fonceai Not at all. No one made him "pull the trigger". But if he had doubts, and was reassured by ground control, is that still his fault? I'm willing to bet that pilots have doubts all the time, as well as anyone in the position to pull a trigger and end a life. What makes a difference is that final step to decide that the reassuring voice providing you with intelligence is correct, and that that voice is correct. Pilots put a great deal of trust in ground control, and that trust was misplaced, in this case. But you don't fault the pilot for trusting ground control. That's what he is trained and required to do.

You're going a long way to make it seem like the pilot is innocent. By his own admission he saw orange panels. While many factors may have influenced his decision to fire, he and he alone pulled the trigger. All he had to do was wait a few minutes and positively ID his targets before firing. It's not like they were going to get away or anything.

[Fonceai]

I agree, but look at it this way.

His ground control told him there were no friendlies in the area.

The vehicles, in addition to orange panels, should have been displaying the Union Jack on their rooftops. If he was close enough to see orange paneling, he was close enough to see red, white, and blue as well.

I am aware of visibility in an A-10 from first-hand experience... I've been in one.

Given the ground control statement that they were not friendly...
And given that the vehicles had no other identifying markings...
And given that he's in an A-10 at a velocity of roughly 80-120MPH (slow for an aircraft)...

Lingering in the air and circling the convoy only invites fire from the ground.

The lack of obvious signs in addition to the orange paneling, along with the ground control verification, means "eliminate the threat".

Also consider that "orange paneling" isn't enough reason to risk your own life... I wouldn't put it past the Iraqis to put matching panels on their vehicles.

[namguy69]

Quote by: jose The Sun Online - News: Joy at direct hit turns to horror Two questions, do you think someone should be held responsable for this error that killed a british soldier, if so who? The cockpit video was not released for ¨security¨reasons but was leaked by the Sun newspaper The Sun Online - Video: Exclusives, interviews and shoots from The Sun online video

No, we only know what the media tells us which is 90% lies. They tell us what they want us to know and what they're told to tell the media...I don't trust any news media.

[Matt W]

No, we only know what the media tells us which is 90% lies. They tell us what they want us to know and what they're told to tell the media...I don't trust any news media.

Spoken as someone who hasn't watched the video, obviously... :rolleyes:

[Fonceai]

The video is accurate, but The Sun's interpretation of it isn't.

Or at least, their interpretation is limited in order to present the story they want to present, but they are leaving out details that only come from research or, in my case, experience.

I guess it just depends on whether you trust that this bitter, 3C251 Staff Sergeant on IRR is giving an accurate account of the inner workings of ground control communicating with pilots.

[namguy69]

Quote by: Matt W Spoken as someone who hasn't watched the video, obviously... :rolleyes:

Video's can be altered, we live in a digital age. Remember, it's not the disbelief in something that gets us in trouble, but rather than the belief....