Question for BennyD

[BennyD]

what gets me most of the countries don't get along, won't share info, India don't want Chinese ships in their waters, now Chinese Gov have said they have found another object with Chinese satellites plus it sounds like Indonesia wouldn't give info to the Malaysia about radar. to much info being held onto. plus funny nothing from the Americans who can spot a terrorist on the ground.

However, the Americans generally spot terrorists on the ground by using drones rather than satellites. Also the bits that wash up from crashed aircraft tend to be pretty small, if they go in at high speed, and are easily, quickly and widely dispersed by wave action. The debris has had a week to disperse so far and we are still no nearer finding out where it went in. Also, one of the main reasons the countries involved don't exchange military type information is common sense. You don't want to give neighbouring, potentially hostile, countries any idea of capabilities or shortcomings in radar coverage. Personally, I don't believe there is an ongoing conspiracy. A plane has crashed but all the countries involved are being cagey about capabilities, which appears a bit suspicious.

 

[Elliott653]

Some clown on Pistonheads posited in all seriousness the something incapacitated the crew. Before passing out, they engaged the auto pilot which made the aircraft fly so high that it left the earth's atmosphere.

 

[hodroyd]

Seemss likely that the plane has run out of fuel somewhere and if it's down in the ocean off western Aussie, I don't think they will find it. It still could have gone north and be hidden somewhere on land, but for nobody to have seen anything on radar in their airspace is weird and probably unlikely..!!

 

[safrane]

Maybe taking part in a real life 'Lost'

 

[BennyD]

Some clown on Pistonheads posited in all seriousness the something incapacitated the crew. Before passing out, they engaged the auto pilot which made the aircraft fly so high that it left the earth's atmosphere.

Now NASA know that 777s can do that, it'll save them billions on rocket and spaceship research.

 

[Elliott653]

Now NASA know that 777s can do that, it'll save them billions on rocket and spaceship research.

Benny, next time you're up there, you could earn a fortune "on the side" by offering sub orbital detours to the passengers.

 

[hodroyd]

I find it absolutely crazy that an aircrew can actually turn off the beacon that identifies the aircraft, this is 2014 and they still allow that to happen..!!

 

[2b1ask1]

Some clown on Pistonheads posited in all seriousness the something incapacitated the crew. Before passing out, they engaged the auto pilot which made the aircraft fly so high that it left the earth's atmosphere.

Daft speculation doesn't help anyone, operating ceiling of a 777 is 43,100 foot and as I understand it the air higher is just too thin to support the aircraft reliably. The U2 and the like are flying on the edge of possibility at best...

This whole saga is and I suspect will always be a mystery; even if the find it there is no guarantee the black box will answer all the questions even if they can recover it...

 

[BennyD]

I find it absolutely crazy that an aircrew can actually turn off the beacon that identifies the aircraft, this is 2014 and they still allow that to happen..!!

If there is a short in the cabling, we have to have the ability to isolate it to try and prevent an airborne fire. We can turn off just about everything and this what might have happened. Smoke and fumes which the crew tried to isolate, were ultimately unsuccessful and the fire took hold. This may have forced the crew out of the flight deck and there (potentially) you have it; a turn towards a suitable airfield, electrics switched off, no mayday call and an aircraft that flew on auto pilot until that failed and the aircraft crashed into the sea at an unknown point of impact. It now transpires they were carrying lithium ion batteries (the cause of the 787 grounding) which cause fires which are virtually unextinguishable.

 

[hodroyd]

It's a pity the black box does not have the transponder built in that identifies the aircraft, sort of a double locator just in case..!!

 

[2b1ask1]

Would there be Li-Ion batteries up in the business end though Ian? Surely they would be back from the cockpit?

 

[hodroyd]

An out of control fire in the air is not conducive to a healthy lifestyle, wherever it is located..!!

 

[BennyD]

Would there be Li-Ion batteries up in the business end though Ian? Surely they would be back from the cockpit?

They were being carried in the hold but the pilots would probably have had them in their laptops/tablets in their flight bags on the flight deck.

 

[Contigo]

Yep I reckon this is what has happened.... Something that has disabled the electrics and most control systems and the plane has just flown on until crashing either from running out of fuel or falling from the sky.

 

[CliveP1]

the aviation expert on sky said if the piece that has been seen on the satellite is from the plane being the size 42ft long and 74ft wide he reckons its been put down on the sea as dropping from a height the pieces would be so small plus they other bits seen are a wooden pallet and other items

 

[CatmanV2]

More likely to be in the centre of a set of ever-expanding ripples somewhere. The question now is, where?

This is far more likely, IMHO.

C

 

[CatmanV2]

It's a pity the black box does not have the transponder built in that identifies the aircraft, sort of a double locator just in case..!!

Pretty sure it does. Or at least a transmitter that lets you find otherwise the odds would be 'slim' at best.

But of course, it's battery powered, which means a trade between range and duration....

C

 

[alfatwo]

Whatever happened the aviation industry needs to up its game regarding tracking aircraft....

Dave

 

[CatmanV2]

Whatever happened the aviation industry needs to up its game regarding tracking aircraft....

Dave

Erm, not really. You can just change the balance point.

C

 

[alfatwo]

Erm, not really. You can just change the balance point.

C

It has been nearly three weeks!

Dave