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re: how long does it take to go 150 miles?

The 150 miles represents only how far they overflew their destination. They were out of radio contact for a considerable length of time before reaching their destination.

There is absolutely no hype involved here. Having an airliner our of contact for over an hour with no indication of what’s going on is as serious as it gets. The fact they flew into someone else’s airspace and ATC had to move other aircraft to keep them clear of traffic is just as bad.

For all anyone on the ground knew the crew was dead and the plane would continue on, being flown by the autopilot, until it ran out of fuel and crashed.

If they flew 150 miles beyond their destination then they would have had to fly another 150 miles to get back to it, plus the space required for a 180 degree turn and to get back on course.

A major problem could have been that in today’s budget conscious world of airline operation they would only enough fuel on board to reach their destination plus enough to get to their designated alternate airport and then less than an hour’s worth of fuel after that. That’s cutting it pretty close if they don’t manage to contact the crew and determine what’s going on.

To those who fly up in that area and depend on ATC and the rules of IFR flight there is nothing, absolutely nothing hyped about this.

There is a dynamic that always accompanies these incidents. The media needs to hype the story so it will get a lot of play. They provide what sounds like entirely rational reports and questions, and then the public goes postal.

There are times when that postal vision is good. There are also times when certain extenuating circumstances reveal that the problem wasn't what it was first hyped up to be, or wasn't nearly as problematic that it was first thought to be.

I sometimes step in to ask folks to realize there are other factors to take into consideration. I do this for balance. I don't do it to totally exhonerate people who do things that are wrong. I don't like media driven pack mentality.

I don't totally disagree with you. I still think you're going too far in your assessment here.

The 150 miles represents only how far they overflew their destination. They were out of radio contact for a considerable length of time before reaching their destination.

Yes they were. There was a frequency issue that involved the air traffic controller that made a hand-off. A new frequency directive was missed. The controller didn't follow up. Did a pilot go to the restroom and miss that instruction? Was a flight attendent talking to the remaining pilot on the com line so he missed the instruction? Why didn't the controller try again? He is supposed to. Why didn't the pilots realize they hadn't gotten a new frequency? They should have. I'd like some answers to this. It is the reason why the pilots were out of contact for an hour.

There is absolutely no hype involved here. Having an airliner our of contact for over an hour with no indication of what’s going on is as serious as it gets. The fact they flew into someone else’s airspace and ATC had to move other aircraft to keep them clear of traffic is just as bad.

Flying beyond your destination by fifteen minutes is hardly as serious as it gets. Being out of contact can be a procedural error, something that happens once in a while. What we have here are several lapses that contributed to the aircraft traveling beyond the intended destination by 150 miles. While I do think that is objectionable, when the explanations start coming in, it works out not to be quite the problem it was blown up to be.

For all anyone on the ground knew the crew was dead and the plane would continue on, being flown by the autopilot, until it ran out of fuel and crashed.

We're talking about a fifteen to twenty minute overshoot of the destination. To a person like you and I that sounds terrible. The reality of it is that this wasn't quite what it was blown out to be. These guys were not getting their radio contacts due to human error. They were involved with something, I don't quite know what yet, but they were also relying on voice communication that wasn't coming due to the frequency variation. Are they culpable, or even the major problem, I believe them to be. I am still not convinced these guys are the big four eyed greasy swamp monsters they are being made out to be.

If they flew 150 miles beyond their destination then they would have had to fly another 150 miles to get back to it, plus the space required for a 180 degree turn and to get back on course.

They are not the only aircraft up there, but your supposition is that the air is so full of aircraft that it was unsafe for them to have to turn and return. I don't believe that to be the case. I'll bet you'd be surprised at the distances aircraft travel out of the way when they have to old for moments in time over a busy airport. It doesn't take long to go what seems to us to be vast distances.

A major problem could have been that in today’s budget conscious world of airline operation they would only enough fuel on board to reach their destination plus enough to get to their designated alternate airport and then less than an hour’s worth of fuel after that. That’s cutting it pretty close if they don’t manage to contact the crew and determine what’s going on.

I"m not in favor of any aircraft going off course or overshooting. I do however want to keep things in perspective. This aircraft returned to the proper destination without secondary incident. There weren't any near misses. The aircraft wasn't in danger of crashing. Nobody was injured. This aircraft remained at altitude. It wasn't on a course to impact an object on the ground. We are told the military was at the ready, but that's a rather vague comment. We're told they're always at the ready.

To those who fly up in that area and depend on ATC and the rules of IFR flight there is nothing, absolutely nothing hyped about this.

Read this sentence of yours. My second paragraph up makes some interesting observations. After reading them, don't you think this sentence of yours here is over the top?

What happened was interesting. I find it problematic. I still think it's more of something to spur some reviews of polices vs something that was a major breach in security.

I do not agree that absolutely nothing about this was hyped.