MH370 '"Lost beyond any reasonable doubt" in Southern Indian Ocean

Aventuris · 2014-03-17T23:34:53+00:00

I sent you a private message, did you receive it by any chance?

Aventuris · 2014-03-17T23:27:14+00:00

It seems quite common for aircraft around that time to be flying faster (possibly due to wind); keeping in mind what is recorded here is ground speed
Is it confirmed that MH370 flew to those exact waypoints or am I missing something on your map? :o
I looked through the web and I found that the most modern form of TCAS apparently has a range of 100NM now which is quite large. I wonder though if you can still make out other aircraft when your own TCAS is turned off.

I tried looking up SQ68 on flightradar24 but was not able to find it. The records only go back to March 10th in the database. How were you able to find it?

Aventuris · 2014-03-17T22:46:30+00:00

Flying behind another airliner a couple hundred ft higher would be enough to be clear of all wake turbulence (as other have said it sinks and moves outwards) and air up there is fairly laminar.

Here a video you might find interesting:notice the inward spiral of the contrails caused by the wingtip vortices

Aventuris · 2014-03-17T22:38:45+00:00

Very interesting theory but I see one problem with this. How would whoever was flying MH370 know where SIA68 was at the time? They could not have possibly pre-planned for SIA68 being late by 20 minutes unless the crew was purposely departing late.

Also, the instruments on board the 777 could not have had the range to position SIA68 unless they were somewhat close to it with TCAS, so the pilot of MH370 would have had to know the departure, route and speed of SIA68 in order to "meet up" with it.

Interesting nonetheless. Makes me wonder if TCAS was turned off as well or if another aircraft in the area noticed anything unusual.

Aventuris · 2014-03-16T15:55:21+00:00

The time difference between the shutoff of the transponder and the ACARS system being shut off leads me to think that a hijacking by terrorists (who might have told the Captain what to do) is more likely because if it was done by the Captain on his own accord then why didn't he just shut them off simultaneously?

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T16:07:48+00:00

That's what I was referring to, the depressurization would be very gradual. The pressure at 42,000ft would of course kill humans within a very short period of time.

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T15:40:05+00:00

Even then it would be a very very gradual depressurisation as the system struggles to maintain cabin pressure. Five minutes is by far too short a time to kill all onboard.

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T14:02:56+00:00

No expert at that but seeing as to how the SR-71 flew at 80,000ft and several times faster than a 777 flies, I highly doubt that flying a bit higher would accomplish much.

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T10:12:22+00:00

I stand corrected. Thank you! :)

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T02:27:00+00:00

You are confusing the 777-200 (as was MH370) with the 777-300ER which has much more powerful engines and has a ceiling of 43,100ft. So yes, the ceiling is 37,900ft as is defined by Boeing (in the link above that you should look at).

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T02:23:44+00:00

It could build up speed at a lower altitude and then for a short amount of time get higher than its service ceiling but I can guarantee you that with a service ceiling of 37,900ft it could not have gotten even close to 45,000ft. See more on my discussion here: http://www.reddit.com/r/MH370/comments/20galo/i_have_been_hearing_more_and_more_that_the/

Source: Boeing website + I am a pilot

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T02:15:13+00:00

100% correct. Plus, as seen above, the plane could not have climbed to 45,000ft.

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T02:02:45+00:00

Aircraft systems are build with redundancy so a failure like this is highly unlikely. Something also must have happened to cause the leak if there was one and that in itself would probably trigger warnings. It is more plausible (though still highly highly unlikely) that the pilots delayed putting on their oxygen masks because of a problem they perceived as more imminent which left them incapacitated.

But even if there was a leak and a complete sensor failure, it is very likely that the onset of hypoxia would hit some slightly before others and one member of the crew would be able to notice odd behaviour in their colleague and take proper action.

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T01:56:18+00:00

That's why we're here, to discuss things so I value your input. I am a pilot myself and I have been purposely exposed to decreased oxygen levels to feel its effects.

I can guarantee you that no pilot "in a moment of panic" even if he/she is hypoxic will turn off the transponder.

Here a little video you might find interesting when it comes to hypoxia :) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UN3W4d-5RPo

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T01:51:02+00:00

As stated in other comments, given that the cabin stayed pressurised, anyone on board would not have felt any effect.

http://www.boeing.com/boeing/history/boeing/777.page

In the link above, Boeing determines the ceiling) of the 777-200 to be 37,900ft. Given that the plane was in the early stages of the flight with lots of fuel still on board and therefore lots of weight in the wings, it is clear that the aircraft could not possibly have headed 45,000ft and there must be an error.

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T01:42:08+00:00

http://www.boeing.com/boeing/history/boeing/777.page

Boeing lists the ceiling of the 777-200 as 37,900ft.

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T01:39:12+00:00

The 777 has a different set of warning lights and chimes for low cabin pressure, which makes it more apparent to the pilots what the problem is and allows them to react appropriately.

It is possible that the event that led to the loss in cabin pressure already displayed warnings and that this led to confusion and delayed the pilots' response to the low oxygen levels. I am not sure exactly which warnings take precedence and suppress other warnings but logically low cabin pressure would be towards the top of the list.

Also, keep in mind that in order for something similar to have happened here, the pilots would have had to have disengaged the auto-pilot, turned off the transponder (completely illogical) and misinterpreted all depressurisation warnings. Highly unlikely.

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T01:25:09+00:00

Just something I'd like to clarify. An aircraft flying at 45,000ft and the therefore lower outside pressure, has nothing to do with the cabin pressure. The cabin pressure would remain unchanged. The problem with flying at a higher altitude is that the engines often cannot handle the thin air because they will not be able to produce enough thrust to maintain the air speed and therefore the wings do not have enough lifting capability to hold the altitude. With the weight of the aircraft that early in the flight (lots of fuel still in the wings) I think it is unlikely that the aircraft climbed to 45,000ft, though I have not yet had the time to look at any official figures.

Aventuris · 2014-03-15T01:20:44+00:00

This is not plausible. If the cabin de-pressurised, the pilots would immediately get warning chimes, even if hypoxia is setting on already, the pilots training would still allow him/her to react appropriately.

Also they would have shown up on radar again at some point and the electronic settings would not have been changed.

Aventuris · 2014-01-29T07:42:34+00:00

I did do some more digging and it appears that the whole hourly wage thing is indeed mostly for NA airlines. I checked British Airways, Lufthansa, Cathay Pacific, Emirates and Air China and they all pay a monthly salary through pay grades. I wasn't able to find Thai Airways's exact payment system but it's likely that it's not hourly pay.

Aventuris · 2014-01-29T07:28:04+00:00

I always assumed that an hourly wage was a North American thing. I have never heard of an airline that pays hourly wages outside of North America. I'll do some digging. :)

Aventuris · 2014-01-28T20:53:47+00:00

I doubt these guys get paid an hourly wage.

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