There is at least a measure of clarity that came from a preliminary report from the National Transportation Safety Board investigating the Dec. 17 crash of Kamaka Air Flight 689, a mishap that killed two young pilots. A maintenance lapse might have missed faulty rigging of key cables controlling turns, something that might have been caught in a more precise preflight check.

But the word is not final, and in any case, clarity is no consolation to the families. They are dealing with grief that came at what ordinarily would have been a joyous season.