[Kharon]

Control of narrative.

Spot on P2, nicely done (again).  Now we have the cover story and can see the machinations.  As neat and tidy a piece of legal/political jiggery-pokery as you will ever see scripted.  Totally plausible and well within the ICAO framework.

But does it satisfactorily answer the underlying questions; the big ones.  IMO no, it does not.

AMSA remain the ‘expert’ body and even if the ‘transition’ from rescue to recovery had been explained to the public, the operation would have retained ‘search’ status.  As such, had it been acknowledged that AMSA must now, technically hand over the ‘search’ operation but would remain ‘active’ in an advisory capacity; i.e. they would continue but now brief ATSB, all would have been believable and above board.  Just common sense, the man at the back of the room could understand.

But it’s not done that way, is it.  ‘Snap’ and AMSA is set adrift, to be replaced by ATSB. Placing Dolan in charge was a calculated gamble.  Few, in Australia, even less in Malaysia would have heard of the Pel-Air accident, let alone the ‘inquiry’ or the results of the Senate deliberations, or the shellacking Dolan and ATSB received as a result.  So, to the world and it’s wife, Dolan was a ‘clean-skin’ wearing the mantle of the Australian reputation as a world class aviation nation.  The fact that Dolan (ATSB) and McCormick (CASA) had done more to damage that reputation than any other pair had done gets lost in the rhetoric.

Why the Truss advisors failed to recommend and promote someone like Folley to the front of house remains a mystery.  Dolan was ‘on the nose’.  P7 reckons that had they by-passed Dolan it would be seen as an admission of government fault in the Pel-Air debacle.  There were two choices; fire Dolan and wear the recriminations or; roll the dice, extend his contract and give him a plum job.  Makes sense to me.  Mrdak could not have two of his agencies publicly tainted, like it or not, there was a repair job to be done.  

Little doubt remains that Malaysia desperately wanted control of the narrative and the flexible, cooperative beyond all reason methodology best suited their purpose.  

Politically and legally it has been a ‘win-win’ situation.  The safety blanket deployed for Dolan’s soft landing, under his golden parachute.  Time will tell whether it has been of benefit to those who wait daily for news of loved ones; or, those of us who wonder WTF has happened, why it happened and ‘who-dunnit’.

Neat, tidy and Oh so legal; the exemplar; defining the art of jiggery-pokery and mass embuggerance.

Selah.