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Originally Posted by meyers9163  Lets put this into perspective...... |
Indeed - let's compare it to the US Military. In the Army there is no such thing as an "accidental discharge." It is a "negligent" discharge because allowing a weapon to to fire implies the operator was negligent in their duties. The reason for the distinction should be obvious; the severity of the consequences can be great if someone allows a firearm to discharge unintentionally. I personally know of a former soldier who has only one leg because his buddy "accidentally" allowed a machine gun to fire. Imagine if the other pilot had been hit in this case. What would the consequences have been then? Then think that the only reason the bullet didn't hurt/kill anyone was because of blind luck.
Through training and very routine discussions on the subject, negligent discharges can nearly be eliminated. One thing the airlines might consider is to emplace a written policy detailing the punishment if a negligent discharge occurs. That would remove ambiguity and would possibly encourage an extra bit of safety from the FFDOs. In the Army a soldier knows
exactly what will happen to them if they have a negligent discharge. There is no surprises and no debate.