"...perfectly recorded the over-pressure created by the explosion of the missile in the vicinity of the forward part of the airplane."
The IAM quote:
" The initial event caused a structural failure in the area of Flight Station 854 to 860, lower left side of the aircraft". That is roughly where the leading edge of the wing joins the fuselage.
My quote:
"None of the parties involved in the investigation support your analysis, and that includes Boeing, TWA, ALPA, and even the IAM."
I guess I could buy front half of the airplane. But where is the data detailing the effects of an overpressure on the front part of the plane? Certainly not in the IAM report. I stand by my statement and add the following quotes from Boeing, ALPA and TWA.
Boeing: "Boeings examination of the recovered wreckage did not reveal any evidence of bomb damage on the structure or damage that could be expected from a missile impact."
ALPA: "Immediately after the accident, there was strong speculation that a criminal act was the cause of the explosion. However, as the wreckage recovery progressed, it became clear that the center wing tank (CWT) was the origin point of the explosion, and the focus of the investigative efforts became the identification of the ignition source."
TWA: "All recovered pieces were carefully examined for evidence of an explosive device and none was found."
Note for non-pilots: The airspeed, altitude and rate of climb instruments on an aircraft are all variants of simple air pressure sensors. The readings can be (and were) analyzed back to the actual air pressures causing those readings. The readings of the last second of the flight recorded an air pressure (overpressure) higher than any that exists in nature and could only have been caused by an explosion external to the plane. Those readings could not even have been recorded by the recorder if an explosion of the center fuel tank was the initial event, since the explosion itself would have instantaneously severed the wires connecting the several sensors with the data recorder, which is located in the rear of the plane.