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Do we know what the autopilot system priorities are for the Boeing 777?
As we know, the plane went flying for hours and hours until it likely ran out of fuel. Once the aircraft ran out of fuel, the engines would shut down, and the plane would maintain altitude as airspeed bled off...but as the aircraft approaches stall speed, I would imagine the priority of the automation would be to prevent the stall, and a descent would likely start at minimum airspeed. I'd be curious what the airspeed and descent rates would be, but if less than a few hundred feet per minute, it's always possible that much of the airplane stayed intact before crashing on the bottom of the ocean...
Do we know what the autopilot system priorities are for the Boeing 777?
As we know, the plane went flying for hours and hours until it likely ran out of fuel. Once the aircraft ran out of fuel, the engines would shut down, and the plane would maintain altitude as airspeed bled off...but as the aircraft approaches stall speed, I would imagine the priority of the automation would be to prevent the stall, and a descent would likely start at minimum airspeed. I'd be curious what the airspeed and descent rates would be, but if less than a few hundred feet per minute, it's always possible that much of the airplane stayed intact before crashing on the bottom of the ocean...
Once the engines contact the choppy ocean, they would likely 'dig in' and cartwheel the aircraft, resulting in some sort of break up, especially if it was only being kept aloft by the autopilot. With a human in control, I think it would be easier to belly-land the aircraft on water, but it would still be an incredibly difficult thing to do.
I am real curious in what state the aircraft is in, if they indeed find it. To have no visible surface wreckage is astonishing, but at the same time, I have a hard time seeing a smooth ocean landing.
Why recover it? All the information to determine the cause was in the black boxes. Since they found pieces on the surface, it would be in pieces on the floor. I read somewhere that they attempted to recover bodies but they were not in good shape and had to abandon that. So why bother then with the rest of the plane?
Why recover it? All the information to determine the cause was in the black boxes. Since they found pieces on the surface, it would be in pieces on the floor. I read somewhere that they attempted to recover bodies but they were not in good shape and had to abandon that. So why bother then with the rest of the plane?
The black boxes will not give any information if there was an explosive on the plane that caused the problem that led to the crash.
The debris from the plane is often what completes the story of what happened. It is important unless the evidence from the black boxes is so compelling that no questions remain.
Back to motive, now that we know the pilot was the one giving the last goodbye, do you think the co-pilot was already dead? I just don't see how his master plan was to have this plane run out of fuel and crash into the ocean. Why would the pilot want to end things that way? He just didn't seem suicidal to me, I mean, it would be just as terrifying to him to end his life that way.
Has anyone heard anything more about them scrambling planes as soon as they knew the 777 was off track and missing? I heard last night that MA came out and reported they did scramble planes. What else are they not telling us...
We were talking about Air France. They figured out very quickly the cause (iced up air speed sensor) from the black boxes.
You are correct, thanks for that.
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