The use of the word "McMurdo" was the subject of an idea put by the Commissioner to Mr Hewitt, who was the second of the witnesses from the navigation section. The Commissioner asked:
"I know you have explained to me how that happened but someone may suggest to me before the enquiry is over that the object was to thats (sic) not to reveal there had been this long standing error in the co-ordinates and that is why the word McMurdo was relayed to them. I take you would not agree with that"
Mr Hewitt said:
"Certainly not sir."
The suggestion had not been raised earlier at the Inquiry and it was not mentioned by anybody subsequently. In particular it was not put to Mr Brown himself when the latter was called to give evidence three months later. However the Commissioner expressed his view upon the matter in the following way. In paragraph 255 (e) he said this—
"In my opinion, the introduction of the word 'McMurdo' into the Air Traffic Control flight plan for the fatal flight was deliberately designed to conceal from the United States authorities that the flight path had been changed, and probably because it was known that the United States Air Traffic Control would lodge an objection to the new flight path."
It will be observed that the last few words are qualified by "probably". It appears that the Commissioner was told during a visit to Antarctica that the United States authorities would not have approved a flight path over Ross Island. But there was no evidence that Air New Zealand had ever received an intimation from the United States authorities to that effect or that the navigation section had reason to think they would so object. The qualification seems to reflect that position. In the result, when the findings in the two sub-paragraphs 255 (e) and (f) are put together they reveal the theory that at one at the same time the navigation section felt obliged to conceal from officials in Wellington the use of a flight track down McMurdo Sound that was regarded favourably by officials at McMurdo Station and from officials at McMurdo Station a flight track over Ross Island that was regarded favourably by officials in Wellington.
Whiteout
In relation to the cover-up allegations that have been made against the executive officers some reference should be made to their knowledge or otherwise of the freak meteorological condition known as "the whiteout phenomenon". Did they know or suspect that such a condition must have been an explanation for what happened and yet still be determined as the Commissioner found, to promote pilot error as the cause of the crash?
It is