Originally Posted by
Packrat
That's the problem, isn't it? I'd bet most F/Os merely look in the correct directions during walkarounds without even seeing what they're supposed to be looking for.
SWA might have the correct system. The F/O does the walk the first flight of the day, the ground crews do the rest. I'd guess their ground crews catch more problems than the average F/O who is just going through the motions.
I've grounded plenty of airplanes at outstations based on stuff my FO's find and report. Not only do they seem to be doing the walkaround, they also seem to be able to make the tough call of telling me about discrepancies that are going to mess up our day, rather than just blowing it off or "finding" it back at the hub. No complaints.