Has anybody proposed that it was the failure of the actual airframe/aircraft itself?And, actually, in all lilelyhood the most probable and rational reason -
- the failure in an older airframe with many hours and many T/L cycles as well in an area which has been problmatic in the past on OTHER 747's, and, caused one event which originally was thought to be a 'bomb' but turned out to be 'door' (door latches) instead ...
I realize all the snap, pizaz and sexiness lies with the very popular (amongst the tin-foil crowd especially) errant or intententional missile theory.
The more likely - and with precedent - theory is the Forward Cargo Bay Door theory.
Taking into account 1) the more reliable eye-witness accounts from pilots of aircraft in the area operating at altitude - as well as 2) RADAR data and 3) the physical location of recovered 'parts' belonging to TWA800, 4) #3 fodded engine (on rights side/same side as FCBD) AND 5) the history of that airframe series -
- THE single most likely cause was FCBD ...