ChiefOfficers.Net

It's a question that three years ago had a clear answer: yes; easily. Now, it's far more complicated. How far, then, should F1 go to appease the Italian team?

STA Travel, which readers of a certain age will remember as a student-only bucket shop in the 1970s, has mutated but still focuses on the younger (that is those who have yet to reach a certain age) traveller. But, the authorities in Australia say that STA Travel began, in 2011, to market a product that has earned the company some AUD12m but mislead consumers who have paid more than STA Travel said they would. Proceedings have been issued in civil court.

It might look like the tail fin from Concord but it's Bloodhound SSC, rescued this week by British businessman Ian Warhurst after entering liquidation last October.

It's one of those interesting differences between English and American. The American charge of "interfering with flight crew" does not involve, as it would in English, a sexual act. But given that there was an assault, the American charge is clear.

In 2015, a news report said that the flooring products of a listed company, "Lumber Liquidators," contained dangerously high levels of Formaldehyde. The company issued a denial and filed it with the SEC. That denial was untrue.

A report in the New Straits Times last week said that the company's CEO, Datuk Seri Azman Mohd, had been "asked to resign" and a deadline given of Friday las week. Amongst those surprised by the "news" is Tenaga National Berhad, TNB, the national power company.

When Brenton Tarrant, a 28-year-old Australian man, turned on the camera on his mobile phone and filmed himself and his actions during a murderous attack on two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, killing 50 people, it brought home to the world that the idea of web-casting, so beloved of American TV cop-show writers, can be even more horrifying when fiction turns to fact. Yet, the dangers of live streaming have long been known and criminals in a wide range of activities have been making use of it for a long time. Is this a "freedom" too far?

For fans of the personalities, regulations and technology of F1, the first race of the 2019 season was fascinating.

For fans of racing, it was extraordinarily dull.

I can't claim to have known Charlie Whiting personally but I can say that, like one or two other people over my decades of enjoying Formula One as a spectator, he has been an important figure in my life. And then, suddenly, he's gone, as if someone turned out the lights. This time, they say "gone" not "go."

Let's accept for a moment that, good as it is, data from commercial flight-tracking services is not 100% authoritative. But it is certainly extremely persuasive. The data that was made available immediately after the crash of Ethiopian Airways flight 302 showed a remarkable similarity to similar data published after the crash of Lion Air JT610. As more and more countries banned B787 MAX, the FAA supported Boeing. Boeing said "we stand by our aircraft." Then even more compelling evidence of similarity between the crashes emerged.

MotoGP has, in recent years, had flashes of brilliance but periods of extreme dullness. If the first race of 2019, Qatar, is any guide, that's not going to be the case this season. And there's interest in the lower formulae, too.

In July last year, we said Malaysia needs to review Malaysia Airlines - Boeing deal because of political issues. Now, there's another reason to look at it.

Australian financial services giant AMP and its solicitors Clayton Utz have "surrendered" in their objections to producing notes of meetings which they claimed were subject to legal professional privilege. ASIC's position is simple: it has wide ranging powers to compel the release of documents and it will accept only a narrow and strict definition of legal professional privilege.

Another Boeing has crashed killing everyone on board. Again, it was a new aircraft. Boeing have long had a problem with quality control which regulators have shrugged off or allowed jerry-rigged solutions to be implemented. Why are they allowed to get away with it? Has the airline industry not learned the lessons of the Ford Pinto?

With all the fuss about China's interest in foreign computer systems, it's salutory to note that a suspicious crypto-asset report made at www.GlobalKYC.com demonstrates that the Chinese government's servers are not immune from attack.