How do you explain the turning off of communications? Payne’s plane’s communications were still active and they were able to track the aircraft using the transponder positions. Also, why would the plane fly up to 45,000 feet dive down to 23,000 feet and then climb back to 29,000 feet. Does not sound like the same problem that Payne experienced.
I haven’t been following every thread on this(there are dozens), but has anyone mentioned that when the pilot(or co-pilot) acknowledged the ATC when notified he’d soon be entering Vietnamese airspace(I assume right before the transponder was turned off), that the ACARS system had already been disabled?
As you have said the ACARS communication system would need to be deactivated by unscrewing a panel and removing a fuse, so it seems likely that the pilot(or co-pilot) was already implementing his plan long before actually rerouting the plane.
OR the plane had already been hijacked by some passengers. However, to me that seems unlikely without cooperation from the pilot/copilot for a couple reasons. 1. As far as we know(SO FAR.. more info comes out by the hour) the plane didn’t deviate off course at all before or after the ACARS system was turned off(not until after the transponder was turned off 15 minutes later). 2. And also hijackers would’ve had to gain access to the cockpit without the pilots being able to get off any messages.
So it seems likely to me, the pilot or co-pilot or both were complicit. Maybe they also had help from crew members or passengers, but IMO one of the pilots or both were definitely involved.
To begin depressurizing the cabin.
dive down to 23,000 feet
If the oxygen masks popped out, the decent would be to make passengers believe the plane was going from 36K feet to a safe altitude.
and then climb back to 29,000 feet.
Everyone was dead and the plane could climb to cruising altitude and go where the pilot wanted to take it.