General Discussion

MADem

(135,425 posts)

13. Well, the Malaysians lost it, and it clearly met with a castastrophe of some sort.

Mon Mar 10, 2014, 12:31 PM

Mar 2014

What happened? Who knows? Mechanical failure, terrorism, hit by a meteor?

Hopefully they will retrieve the black boxes and we'll learn the cause from those.

That debris field that was spotted could well be the wreckage.

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How do we lose an airplane [View all] LynneSin Mar 2014 OP

over water warrior1 Mar 2014 #1

I hate to trivalize a horrifically tragic situation like this. Tommy_Carcetti Mar 2014 #2

So did I Renew Deal Mar 2014 #9

OMG - me too LynneSin Mar 2014 #18

LOST, The Langoliers and Millennium. Catherine Vincent Mar 2014 #60

"harmless to human" 30million year old bacteria, NM_Birder Mar 2014 #85

Showing my age here, lol. CrispyQ Mar 2014 #101

I believe that several people are thinkink about similar "explanations". NealK Mar 2014 #205

I thought of LiberalElite Mar 2014 #233

The ocean is rather large cthulu2016 Mar 2014 #3

But it didn't go down in the middle of an ocean B2G Mar 2014 #12

If that map is accurate, it was lost about 100 miles from land JHB Mar 2014 #21

Point being, it's not the middle of the ocean. B2G Mar 2014 #24

I still don't understand why this is considered insufficiently vast... JHB Mar 2014 #30

The search doesn't just rely on visuals B2G Mar 2014 #38

None of which seem to be transmitting. riverwalker Mar 2014 #82

I know, right? nt B2G Mar 2014 #107

Those airplanes aren't drawn to scale in that image jberryhill Mar 2014 #44

But they're still yellow, aren't they? Orrex Mar 2014 #48

They are all still yellow mockmonkey Mar 2014 #58

No kidding. nt B2G Mar 2014 #49

! opiate69 Mar 2014 #110

I just did a distance measure across that Gulf. A HERETIC I AM Mar 2014 #97

how do they miss it??? it's right there CreekDog Mar 2014 #200

and if the largest piece you're looking for is a door or part of the tail? CreekDog Mar 2014 #66

What are you doing??? CreekDog Mar 2014 #109

Are you talking to me? B2G Mar 2014 #111

yes I'm talking to you and you seem to think that if it doesn't go down in a giant ocean... CreekDog Mar 2014 #112

I never said it should be easy B2G Mar 2014 #114

if you're using the term "ELT" casually CreekDog Mar 2014 #116

It would have had to go SIGNIFICANTLY off course B2G Mar 2014 #117

what is the precision necessary to locate a beacon? CreekDog Mar 2014 #122

Depends... Glassunion Mar 2014 #163

if only i'd realized i was arguing with someone who uses the term "gun grabber" CreekDog Mar 2014 #189

wow. wow. wow. CreekDog Mar 2014 #191

What exactly is your problem? B2G Mar 2014 #195

no the wow is for you complaining that Obamacare included maternity coverage CreekDog Mar 2014 #196

Yeah, cause I'm the only one on DU B2G Mar 2014 #198

well i think you're unique CreekDog Mar 2014 #199

I like Skjippy. NealK Mar 2014 #206

LOL CreekDog Mar 2014 #236

Why do you waste your time digging up old posts? blueamy66 Mar 2014 #197

Someone did that to me recently.... CANDO Mar 2014 #202

I just don't get it. blueamy66 Mar 2014 #204

i don't know why your own posts bother you so much CreekDog Mar 2014 #207

My posts don't bother me. blueamy66 Mar 2014 #211

and you're here in this thread doing what? CreekDog Mar 2014 #214

calling you out for stalking people blueamy66 Mar 2014 #217

so you follow me to this thread to talk about something other than the thread CreekDog Mar 2014 #218

bye blueamy66 Mar 2014 #219

thank you for following me here to accuse me of stalking CreekDog Mar 2014 #220

I'm not the one throwing out posts from over a year ago. blueamy66 Mar 2014 #221

pointing out recent posts on a public message board is not stalking CreekDog Mar 2014 #223

Bye blueamy66 Mar 2014 #225

Here's some irony for ya, CreekDog... Skip Intro Mar 2014 #232

Yes it is creepy. And stalkerish. And CreekDog is well-known for it. Skip Intro Mar 2014 #230

Funny your posts are very much like B2G whom you're defending CreekDog Mar 2014 #231

Gee, an insinuation from CreekDog. I guess water is still wet. n/t Skip Intro Mar 2014 #234

their search area Niceguy1 Mar 2014 #113

100 mile radius = South Carolina Glassunion Mar 2014 #164

about Niceguy1 Mar 2014 #168

Yeah, some people seem to think that this area is the size of a swimming pool. NealK Mar 2014 #209

The experts are befuddled adigal Mar 2014 #129

Judging by your posts, you are assuming exactly where it went down. You cannot. Glassunion Mar 2014 #162

There are far more uninhabited square miles on the planet pipoman Mar 2014 #4

Not in the area it went down nt B2G Mar 2014 #14

how many humans inhabit the South China Sea? CreekDog Mar 2014 #68

The poster was referring to land populations, which are heavy in the region where the bluestate10 Mar 2014 #177

It's easy to lose track of ones that are beamed up to the mother ship in orbit FarCenter Mar 2014 #5

good point Renew Deal Mar 2014 #8

That's It!! Champion Jack Mar 2014 #67

I almost am beginning to think that might actually be the explanation. ... spin Mar 2014 #102

Cue Carl Sagan: "There are millions and millions of ocean miles..." randome Mar 2014 #6

It's a big world Renew Deal Mar 2014 #7

Dharma Initiative...anyone got contact info for Ben Linus? HereSince1628 Mar 2014 #10

If this aircraft had been flying over the continental U.S. Jenoch Mar 2014 #11

Isn't general aviation traffic tracked by transponder broadcasts from the planes? HereSince1628 Mar 2014 #16

I don't think all general aviation airplanes Jenoch Mar 2014 #22

There are the engine monitors, for example FarCenter Mar 2014 #31

The transponders provide altitude and tail number, not position, speed, or direction. Angleae Mar 2014 #159

Basically the transponder is received by the radar set hootinholler Mar 2014 #174

Well, the Malaysians lost it, and it clearly met with a castastrophe of some sort. MADem Mar 2014 #13

The strangest thing is that there was no mayday call Mosby Mar 2014 #37

I hope they figure this one out, soon. MADem Mar 2014 #45

10 countries are involved now Mosby Mar 2014 #52

If the engines fell off, I'd expect the electrical system to be in very poor shape jeff47 Mar 2014 #64

The 777 has an automatic RAT and an APU Xithras Mar 2014 #76

That's assuming the engines tearing off didn't produce a short. jeff47 Mar 2014 #86

Not really. Savannahmann Mar 2014 #75

Thanks for that research. SheilaT Mar 2014 #90

Your totally right! marlakay Mar 2014 #123

A charter jet flew off of San Juan once Savannahmann Mar 2014 #165

I'm with you. While catastrophic structural failure or terrorism are possible causes...... Hassin Bin Sober Mar 2014 #215

The Air France flight that crashed a few years ago. Savannahmann Mar 2014 #216

Not strange if there was a catastrophic explosion, or major malfunction and the pilots were LuckyLib Mar 2014 #89

Yes, getting a mayday call out would be a priority ..... oldhippie Mar 2014 #183

On another site, a pilot didn't think it was weird adigal Mar 2014 #132

Either an explosion or hull disaster. nt Logical Mar 2014 #157

All I know is I picked the wrong day to stop sniffing glue. NuclearDem Mar 2014 #15

I should not be laughing over that one.... LynneSin Mar 2014 #20

No one will blame you. NuclearDem Mar 2014 #28

US satellite coverage of the area said to be "very good" mainer Mar 2014 #17

First someone has to go up and retrieve the film. randome Mar 2014 #19

Very funny, but some spy satellites really used film jmowreader Mar 2014 #100

Well, look at some of the Google Earth images. MADem Mar 2014 #50

It would be like searching for a penny on a football field while looking through a soda straw hack89 Mar 2014 #54

Sorry, but US spy satellites are advanced enough to highlight an infected pimple bluestate10 Mar 2014 #178

Do you understand field of view? hack89 Mar 2014 #179

People don't understand that the entire surface of the Earth isn't always being photographed. Gravitycollapse Mar 2014 #188

It is a vast ocean liberal N proud Mar 2014 #23

Not in the location where they lost contact. B2G Mar 2014 #25

It is a fair size body of water it was over. liberal N proud Mar 2014 #26

There was still a good load of fuel on board proudretiredvet Mar 2014 #34

Still smaller than a grain of sand in a sandbox jberryhill Mar 2014 #40

Again, they don't just search based on visuals B2G Mar 2014 #43

A "pretty good idea" still leaves a vast area to search jeff47 Mar 2014 #70

C'mon. they were likely traveling at 550 mph. There is also the notion that they turned back. okaawhatever Mar 2014 #94

Makes it possible they will never find it treestar Mar 2014 #126

i don't think we have cctv every 100 feet on that particular ocean floor. unblock Mar 2014 #27

We can still hear things proudretiredvet Mar 2014 #32

the difference between passive and active sonar -- unblock Mar 2014 #36

This is not a point that I can argue. proudretiredvet Mar 2014 #65

i worked on a darpa project involving active sonar unblock Mar 2014 #125

This is an interesting question. proudretiredvet Mar 2014 #29

The plan that crashed in 2009 going to Brazil wasn't found for 2 years. cbdo2007 Mar 2014 #33

plane was leaving Brazil, and wreckage was found the next day - the data recorders were found later Baclava Mar 2014 #47

The data recorders weren't found until almost 2 years later. A HERETIC I AM Mar 2014 #77

that's what I said, but wreckage was found the next day or so, plane crashes can't hide in the ocean Baclava Mar 2014 #80

Fair enough. I'm forming my own theory.... A HERETIC I AM Mar 2014 #83

That's the same hypothesis I am coming to .... oldhippie Mar 2014 #184

Since the water is shallow (~75 meters) it may also limit the range of the black box pingers FarCenter Mar 2014 #35

Could you explain the physics behind that ...... oldhippie Mar 2014 #71

Sounds travels faster, and longer, the denser the object. MicaelS Mar 2014 #95

That is a great reference, but ..... oldhippie Mar 2014 #118

In shallow water, energy is absorbed in the bottom and the surface FarCenter Mar 2014 #115

Can they do a location history on passenger cellphones? jsr Mar 2014 #39

They weren't connecting to any cell towers jberryhill Mar 2014 #41

The GPS receivers don't communicate directly with the satellites? jsr Mar 2014 #53

No, they do not "communicate" with the satellites jberryhill Mar 2014 #59

Never mind. jsr Mar 2014 #62

Funny how we're told things like a satellite can read a lottery ticket accurately. If we're valerief Mar 2014 #42

There are about 48,000 planes in the air in any given 24 hour period. randome Mar 2014 #55

For a satellite to see it, you would have to tell it exactly where and at what focal length A HERETIC I AM Mar 2014 #81

Not freaked out. enlightenment Mar 2014 #46

Spy satellites sound pretty worthless now mainer Mar 2014 #51

Think of it as using a pair of binoculars to look across the room. jeff47 Mar 2014 #69

Spy satellites are not designed to look for things like that hack89 Mar 2014 #134

If it was bombed and disintegrated at 35,000 feet, as now seems likely GliderGuider Mar 2014 #56

I take it the other way. I don't think it broke up at altitude. Xithras Mar 2014 #88

All excellent points. Thanks! nt GliderGuider Mar 2014 #91

Maybe the large amount of garbage we throw in the oceans is obscuring the debris field? NickB79 Mar 2014 #150

IF it were destroyed by explosives in mid air Trajan Mar 2014 #96

I agree. We'll have to wait and see. nt GliderGuider Mar 2014 #98

If it WAS bombed and disintegrated at 35,000 feet... jmowreader Mar 2014 #103

That assumes a bomb large enough to make a flash NickB79 Mar 2014 #149

I'm flying in 2 weeks and I'm very disturbed by this ecstatic Mar 2014 #57

Airport Security is Kabuki Theater Savannahmann Mar 2014 #87

I just flew today ellie Mar 2014 #186

The one conclusion I draw is that the likelihood of terrorism as a cause decreases every day. DebJ Mar 2014 #61

Well yes and no....the Air Egypt flight that the pilot did a "Allah Akbar" when the copilot.. EX500rider Mar 2014 #124

Or if someone said "Jesus Christ!" jberryhill Mar 2014 #128

However when used before killing 217 people on purpose you can also draw a different conclusion. n/t EX500rider Mar 2014 #131

Or jump to one jberryhill Mar 2014 #135

I am saying it was intentional because he flew the plane into the ocean on purpose. EX500rider Mar 2014 #138

Terrorism requires a threat; terrorist actions are meant to instigate some sort of DebJ Mar 2014 #142

Sometimes it's just about killing un-believers also. n/t EX500rider Mar 2014 #143

And actually what he said was: "Tawkalt ala Allah", which translates to "I rely on God."... EX500rider Mar 2014 #133

Which means he may have been making a cognitive error jberryhill Mar 2014 #136

No doubt there. But on-purpose. n/t EX500rider Mar 2014 #144

With all the technology we have today, isn't it reasonable to expect BlueStreak Mar 2014 #63

You're talking about an extremely severe situation. jeff47 Mar 2014 #72

The boxes are virtually indestructible today. That's not the problem. BlueStreak Mar 2014 #120

First, they are not virtually indestructible. jeff47 Mar 2014 #121

Yes, what's your point? BlueStreak Mar 2014 #137

That you can't just upsize. Larger components cause larger stresses in the device. jeff47 Mar 2014 #140

I didn't know that. Lends credence to my theory that we shot that plane down adigal Mar 2014 #139

Not really. jeff47 Mar 2014 #141

It seems counterintuitive, but does make sense adigal Mar 2014 #152

Jeff can come up with an argument for anything anybody says. The fact is BlueStreak Mar 2014 #155

Here is a list of black box problems BlueStreak Mar 2014 #160

Both the flight data recorder and cockpit voice recorder survived the flight 93 crash in PA whopis01 Mar 2014 #161

Maybe it fell up instead of down CreekDog Mar 2014 #73

A sudden gravity reversal? spin Mar 2014 #108

You can be sure the U.S. knows what happened, just not saying.. 2banon Mar 2014 #74

Maybe because...they don't know? brooklynite Mar 2014 #78

I beg to differ 2banon Mar 2014 #92

The technology may exist, but you have to know where to aim it. A HERETIC I AM Mar 2014 #99

You actually believe the entire surface of the Earth is videotaped at all times? Gravitycollapse Mar 2014 #185

No, this isn't a Bond Film 2banon Mar 2014 #237

Because when it happened all the sats were elsewhere doing their job? EX500rider Mar 2014 #127

Maybe they actually don't know. They aren't omniscient, for fuck's sake. Gravitycollapse Mar 2014 #181

that's simply not true backwoodsbob Mar 2014 #222

In that case, we shouldn't be throwing money away at these piles of junk floating in space 2banon Mar 2014 #228

why are you being so obtuse? backwoodsbob Mar 2014 #238

This message was self-deleted by its author brooklynite Mar 2014 #79

Maybe Iranian terrorists stole it. nt Zorra Mar 2014 #84

A strange thought crossed my mind this morning that it got hijacked and taken to Cleita Mar 2014 #147

It's a big ocean. longship Mar 2014 #93

We lost 4 on 9/11 Politicalboi Mar 2014 #104

Bollocks. A HERETIC I AM Mar 2014 #105

Kinda what happens when you fly vertically into the ground at 500mph+ in a aluminum tube. n/t EX500rider Mar 2014 #130

yup. nt La Lioness Priyanka Mar 2014 #148

aluminum tube! Renew Deal Mar 2014 #151

Google is your friend nt cpwm17 Mar 2014 #154

Radar Calista241 Mar 2014 #106

So if it was hijacked and transponders turned off adigal Mar 2014 #153

Transponders Calista241 Mar 2014 #170

The pilot turns the transponder off every time the plane lands. longship Mar 2014 #226

Same here treestar Mar 2014 #119

The plane I can find - it's the damned ignition key that eludes me jberryhill Mar 2014 #145

Well, Amelia Earhart disappeared into thin air too. Cleita Mar 2014 #146

I was thinking of her as I was reading this thread Samantha Mar 2014 #192

This message was self-deleted by its author Chemisse Mar 2014 #156

This article may help explain it for you. AF447 took 5 days to find any wreckage. uppityperson Mar 2014 #158

In 1956 a B-25 bomber ditched in the Monongahela river. It was witnessed. Some of the crew survived. LeftyMom Mar 2014 #166

is the area being searched larger than Delaware? CreekDog Mar 2014 #172

..... A HERETIC I AM Mar 2014 #173

. Jamastiene Mar 2014 #175

LOL JimDandy Mar 2014 #210

It's obvious...Aliens...mass abduction HipChick Mar 2014 #167

Isn't the Black Box Shankapotomus Mar 2014 #169

Yes Glassunion Mar 2014 #171

Yes, they will have to troll the water towing special equipment. Gravitycollapse Mar 2014 #182

That would explain why Shankapotomus Mar 2014 #194

I am not freaked out. Airplanes in the air are tracked by radar systems. bluestate10 Mar 2014 #176

They are now expanding their search area. Beacool Mar 2014 #180

It took 6 days to find the first debris from AF 447. Gravitycollapse Mar 2014 #187

Yes, but they tested the fuel and concluded that it came from ships. Beacool Mar 2014 #193

For a wider area search, they should use one of the big drones, like a Global Hawk FarCenter Mar 2014 #190

We lose an airplane for 2 really simple, stupid reasons BlueStreak Mar 2014 #201

It is surprising to me that a pilot can turn off the transponder mainer Mar 2014 #208

I agree on the transponder. Glassunion Mar 2014 #212

Even minimal vitals would be a huge step forward BlueStreak Mar 2014 #213

"Anyone else freaked out over this?" NealK Mar 2014 #203

How is it that on 9 Eleven, cell phone calls were made from the hijacked planes, yet KewlKat Mar 2014 #224

Uhhm! Because there are no cell towers in the Gulf of Thailand? longship Mar 2014 #227

We, as in the USA, did not lose this aircraft seveneyes Mar 2014 #229

I think this story has attracted a lot of attention because it's still a mystery what happened... fujiyama Mar 2014 #235

Spam deleted by MIR Team karanm8090 Sep 2019 #239