Comment by SoftTalker
7 hours ago
Very few airliners depart in perfect working order. There is a "MEL" (minimum equipment list) that details which systems can be inop and still operate the flight.
7 hours ago
Very few airliners depart in perfect working order. There is a "MEL" (minimum equipment list) that details which systems can be inop and still operate the flight.
Sure, however that's why there's a minimum. The problem is that lots of GA aeroplanes aren't that well maintained.
People aren't on the whole suicidal, they're not going to go up in a plane they expect to kill them, but they absolutely will push their luck in privately owned planes and statistically that doesn't end well. Go see the figures for yourself, inadequate maintenance isn't first on the list for why GA crash rates are too high, but it's on there.
"Aviation in itself is not inherently dangerous. But to an even greater degree than the sea, it is terribly unforgiving of any carelessness, incapacity or neglect."
Alfred Gilmer Lamplugh
None of that stuff really impacts safety. They're not leaving the gate with under inflated tires or expired engine oil.