From The Editor’s Desk
I’ve read about incidents like this before, but last Thursday I experienced one for myself. After spending four days in the Netherlands with DAF Trucks, I boarded a late-night flight in Paris for the long trip home to South Africa. It was close to midnight, the cabin lights were dimmed and as the aircraft taxied towards the runway, most passengers were settling in for the 10-hour haul ahead. Then something odd happened.
Instead of hearing the roar of the engines as we prepared for take-off, the aircraft slowed down and quietly turned around. A few minutes later we were taxiing back to the terminal. Eventually the pilot came over the speakers in the calm voice pilots always seem to have – even when your imagination is already preparing for a Netflix disaster documentary. “Ladies and gentlemen, we have a small security problem and there will be a slight delay.” The word “small” was comforting. Pilots also like using the word “slight” – especially when referring to turbulence, usually at the exact moment you are about to head to the loo. Then the plane suddenly drops like it has hit a pothole somewhere over Bloemfontein and you start reconsidering every life decision you have ever made. But I digress.
Once back at the terminal, several officials boarded the aircraft and escorted a passenger off the plane. Quietly. Professionally. No drama. As it turned out, the passenger had boarded heavily intoxicated and had passed out across his seat before take-off. When cabin crew asked him to sit upright and fasten his seatbelt, he became aggressive and verbally abusive. That was enough for the captain. Later, one of the airhostesses explained the reasoning to me. “If he’s causing problems before take-off,” she said, “the situation could become much worse once we are in the air.”
And there it was. The principle that every trucking company in South Africa should adopt. The pilot of that aircraft identified a potential problem before departure and refused to ignore it simply because schedules were tight, passengers were impatient, or delays were expensive. He understood that a small issue on the ground can become a major danger once on route. Exactly the same principle applies to trucking.
If a driver identifies a defect before leaving the depot – whether it’s a tyre with a chunk missing and the cords exposed – which, by the way, is not only dangerous but also illegal – faulty brakes, defective lights or any other safety concern – that problem should be dealt with immediately, not postponed until “later”. Too often drivers report defects only to be told: “Just take the truck. We’ll sort it out afterwards.” But afterwards can sometimes arrive in the form of a tyre blow-out, a collision, a rollover, injuries or fatalities.
A chunk missing from a tyre may appear to be a small problem while the truck is standing in the yard. So did the drunk passenger lying across his seat in Paris. But both had the potential to become dangerous once on route. The airline removed the risk before take-off. Too many transport operators still send theirs onto the highway.
Truck drivers are the pilots of their rigs. They should have both the authority and the backing to refuse to operate vehicles they believe are unsafe. Because when a driver raises a concern before departure, he is not being difficult – he is potentially preventing disaster while also protecting your asset.
One drunk passenger. One dangerous tyre. Same principle. Deal with the problem before take-off. Because once you are airborne – or rolling down the highway at 80km/h with 56 tons under you – small problems have a nasty habit of becoming very big ones.
Patrick O’Leary
Managing Editor, FleetWatch
