[Lower Deck]

But I convinced him that there was a good reason why he probably didn't see a missile. Airplanes have virtually no downward forward visibility. Since he was close to, and nearly level with TWA800, the missile(s) would have been coming from underneath him and probably only in his field of vision for milliseconds. So none probably would have registered with him. He obviously thought enough of this suggestion that when he subsequently testified before the NTSB, he told them he wasn't really in a position to see a missile if one were there.

But I assume there was several miles of separation between the two and he might have been able to see a missile rising to meet the plane. The fact that he didn't is evidence supporting the conclusion that it wasn't a missile that brought the airplane down but instead a terrorist bomb of some sort.

[ml/nj]

The fact that he didn't is evidence supporting the conclusion that it wasn't a missile that brought the airplane down but instead a terrorist bomb of some sort.

Smokeblowers annoy me.

Have you ever been pilot in command of an airplane? Have you ever been withheld a clearance that you requested until you cleared a plane you could see with your own eyes? (You stare at it. You don't look down at the ocean.)

I guess this pilot was just stupid and wound up agreeing with me that there was a good chance that a missile or missiles were involved but he might not have seen them.

And then there are the hundreds of eyewitnesses who did see a missile or missiles.

Terrorist bomb, my @$$ !

ML/NJ