Missing 777

[buickanddeere]

The loss of a simple thing like an air speed indicator has caused the heavies to crash. The margin between overspeed and stall at cruising altitude is very small. If one air speed indicator fails, the pilots often don't know if they should believe the second one.

Why the transponder was turned off but the military claims that they were tracking it on radar is a mystery. I would have thought that after 911 a fighter would have been sent up to investigate any such scenario, before one finds it plowing into the center of your city... I know that was done with a business jet (before 911) when the crew blacked out from lack of oxygen and did not respond to the FAA flight following. The fighter did a "top gun" stunt to look in the cockpit to see if any crew activity could be seen and they ended up following it to the ground after the tanks ran dry and it went into a shallow dive.

The plane was over back woods 3rd world counties with limited radar coverage and controllers with limited skills or interest. They could have changed transponder codes and looked kosher.
That plane is sitting in Iran, Pakistan or somewhere. Being repainted , re-fuelled and maybe loaded with Iran's enriched u235. Fuel tanks can be added in the cargo holds to further add range to that 777ER.
Think of how many targets there are within 8000miles of Pakistan.
Put some of the passengers back on as hostages and who is going to shoot the plane down?

 

[aczlan]

I'm not saying Mr Ledgerwood's scenario is impossible, but it is highly unlikely. The airways that planes use are like 2-way streets but with separation vertically instead of horizontally. Thats 1000 feet altitude separation. Most all planes are navigating with GPS so they are spot on the airway centerline. One airplane shadowing another would have to stack up or down about 500 feet to avoid the lead planes wake turbulence. Now if these two planes passed any opposite direction traffic the separation would be minimal and the passing pilots would be alerting ATC. These airways are heavily used and someone would see whats going on. I suppose it could happen but don't think so.

Even at night with the hijacked plane's lights turned off?

Aaron Z

 

[buickanddeere]

Another thought, no cell phone texts or calls from more than 250 passengers before it disappeared. If it were traditionally hijacked ..someone would have sent a text. Unless the passengers already planned on a 5/7 hour flight over the ocean. If the flight landed somewhere else at night, it's possible passengers would not know it in the dark. But no communication from that many possible outlets is really odd

I tried that last week . Cell phone would not sync to a tower until we were below 1000ft. So no cell phone signal from the plane . Highjackers could have used cell phone jammers.
There are Hangers or tarps at back woods runways to hide an aircraft.

 

[buickanddeere]

Don't know which is more lost, the plane or the news media?

News media is the most lost. They won't say high jacking or Islam.

 

[buickanddeere]

I haven't really kept up with the news reports regarding this story, but it seems to me that someone is hiding something.

An airliner cannot just disappear in today's world with all the trackers et al that are fitted to them, surely?

My thoughts are that it went down in the ocean and either they don't want to say anything until the wreckage is found or they are not talking for another reason.

If plane was in the ocean the navy would have heard a black box sonar ping before now.

 

[EddieWalker]

Can anybody remember a place that crashed in the ocean that wasn't spotted from the air the next day? There just isn't any way for a plane to hit the water and not leave a mess. Kind of hard to believe that it landed in the jungle somewhere and nobody noticed it. Seems like every time that happens, there's video of it, but even in the most remote areas of the world, there are still people that would have seen or heard something that big crashing.

I'm still thinking it landed somewhere.

Eddie

 

[joemd11]

Even at night with the hijacked plane's lights turned off?

Aaron Z

ya, even at night.

 

[joemd11]

I can't think of any scenario that makes sense. What country is going to risk the international sh*t storm that would erupt by allowing a highjacked airliner with about 250 captives on board to land at one of its airports? How do you keep something like that quiet? What is it that someone wants?Can't be just the aircraft because there are a lot of old planes out there that can be acquired cheap. Someone onboard the plane? Ok, now what to do about the other 200+ people.

 

[EddieWalker]

How about a country that allowed and protected the person behind 9-11 to live in an upscale area with a lot of their senior military leaders?

Of course, the fear of US sanctions is pretty severe. I heard that 11 Russians and Ukrainians can no longer visit the US!!!!

Eddie

 

[J F]

Think of how many targets there are within 8000miles of Pakistan.
Put some of the passengers back on as hostages and who is going to shoot the plane down?

Any country with the capability would be my guess.

 

[joemd11]

How about a country that allowed and protected the person behind 9-11 to live in an upscale area with a lot of their senior military leaders?

Of course, the fear of US sanctions is pretty severe. I heard that 11 Russians and Ukrainians can no longer visit the US!!!!

Eddie

True statement. But, now that country X has a Boing 777, 250 pax and crew, and assorted bags and cargo, what happens next? Until that plane is accounted for I think everything flying is going to get scrutinized. Especially flights entering the U.S. and most other developed countries.

 

[powerpace]

I was a few miles from this crash on duty but wasn't called to the site. There were people a couple of hundred feet from this crash and didn't know it until the emergency vehicles came to the area.

This was crash that took a few minutes to respond to. There were some passengers that actually left the scene before emergency responders arrived. Some took taxi's home.

Delta Airlines Flight 178 December 1978

AirDisaster.Com: Investigation: United Airlines Flight 173
portland oregon plane crash 1978 - Bing Images

 

[Tomtint]

I can't think of any scenario that makes sense. What country is going to risk the international sh*t storm that would erupt by allowing a highjacked airliner with about 250 captives on board to land at one of its airports? How do you keep something like that quiet? What is it that someone wants?Can't be just the aircraft because there are a lot of old planes out there that can be acquired cheap. Someone onboard the plane? Ok, now what to do about the other 200+ people.

Syria, Packistan, Iran, Afganistan. Pick your favorite. The passengers were all killed when the plaine went to 45k feet and that's why there have been no texts or calls. The 777 landed somewhere and will be used as a weapon of mass destruction. We are talking about 1 aircraft and a handful of people who need to be quiet until it's to late for where ever the 777 re appears. Think of how many people and moving parts 911 required. Somehow, they managed to keep all those guys and everyone else quiet until after it was over. One plane is simple.

 

[joemd11]

Syria, Packistan, Iran, Afganistan. Pick your favorite. The passengers were all killed when the plaine went to 45k feet and that's why there have been no texts or calls. The 777 landed somewhere and will be used as a weapon of mass destruction. We are talking about 1 aircraft and a handful of people who need to be quiet until it's to late for where ever the 777 re appears. Think of how many people and moving parts 911 required. Somehow, they managed to keep all those guys and everyone else quiet until after it was over. One plane is simple.

So it is simpler to snatch an airliner (that quite a few people, including muslims, are searching for) than it would be to buy or lease an older 747, DC-10, MD11, etc, to use in this scenario??? I don't think so.

 

[Tomtint]

So it is simpler to snatch an airliner (that quite a few people, including muslims, are searching for) than it would be to buy or lease an older 747, DC-10, MD11, etc, to use in this scenario??? I don't think so.

...if you have a half dozen guys show up with towels on their heads and want to buy a airliner with no apparent need for one....it would raise a few concerns with authorities. Now if they have hijacked one, not only will it instill some terror in the flying public again, it shows the world that they are actually smarter, and more sophisticated than the media portrays them to be. ... I hope I'm wrong.

 

[Express]

If it were extremists they would have crashed into something to make their point. They are not interested in keeping you guessing. Unless their plan failed and crashed into the ocean. I just can't believe that there isn't a trace of wreckage anywhere.

 

[lilranch2001]

I am surprised all of you have not thought up the actual answer......

As you all know Obama only has a short time left before he has to give up Air Force One.............

 

[Tomtint]

If it were extremists they would have crashed into something to make their point. They are not interested in keeping you guessing. Unless their plan failed and crashed into the ocean. I just can't believe that there isn't a trace of wreckage anywhere.

We have satalites than can spot a DIY cup in the middle of the pacific ..in about 10 seconds.... There is no wreckage. Maybe the extremists want to make a bigger impression than just diving a plane into the ocean. They have always wanted to one up there last project.

 

[joemd11]

...if you have a half dozen guys show up with towels on their heads and want to buy a airliner with no apparent need for one....it would raise a few concerns with authorities. Now if they have hijacked one, not only will it instill some terror in the flying public again, it shows the world that they are actually smarter, and more sophisticated than the media portrays them to be. ... I hope I'm wrong.

How about some guys in expensive suits lease a 747 cargo plane to haul their "classic cars" from point A to point B. Then if they want complete control of the plane and they have their own pilots they just have to dispose of a couple pilots and loadmaster. Seems easier and way less messy than a hijacked airliner.

 

[joemd11]

We have satalites than can spot a DIY cup in the middle of the pacific ..in about 10 seconds.... There is no wreckage. Maybe the extremists want to make a bigger impression than just diving a plane into the ocean. They have always wanted to one up there last project.

A real possibility.