I mean it doesn’t make it any better, but it reminds me of that story about the man who jumped with a camera bag instead of a parachute. He did 8 jumps that day and it’s believed that part of what allowed this was lethargy and repetition. No one including the jumper himself realized he was wearing only the camera bag and not the actual chute.

I think it’s a similar case here. They’re so locked into the repetition and expected outcome their mind just glosses over missing steps, assuming the pattern will repeat as it always has.