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Investigators Suspect Missing Airlines Plane Flew On for Hours (Update!)
The Wall Street Journal ^ | March 13, 2014 | Andy Pasztor And Jon Ostrower

Posted on 03/13/2014 1:56:01 PM PDT by CedarDave

Investigators Believe Plane Flew On for Total of Up to Five Hours

U.S. investigators suspect that Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 stayed in the air for up to four hours past the time it reached its last confirmed location, according to two people familiar with the details, raising the possibility that the plane could have flown on for hundreds of additional miles under conditions that remain murky.

The investigators believe the plane flew for a total of up to five hours, according to these people, based on analysis of signals sent by the Boeing 777's satellite-communication link designed to automatically transmit the status of certain onboard systems to the ground.

Throughout the roughly four hours after the jet dropped from civilian radar screens, these people said, the link operated in a kind of standby mode and sought to establish contact with a satellite or satellites. These transmissions did not include data, they said, but the periodic contacts indicate to investigators that the plane was still intact and believed to be flying.

Corrections & Amplifications U.S. investigators suspect Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 flew for hours past the time it reached its last confirmed location, based on an analysis of signals sent through the plane's satellite-communication link designed to automatically transmit the status of onboard systems, according to people familiar with the matter. An earlier version of this article incorrectly said investigators based their suspicions on signals from monitoring systems embedded in the plane's Rolls-Royce PLC engines and described that process.

(Excerpt) Read more at online.wsj.com ...


TOPICS: Extended News; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: iran; malaysia; mh370; waronterror
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To: CedarDave
If they can determine which satellites and a time stamp, they should be able to deduce course direction.

I can't accept that any engine performance data transmitted at half-hour time intervals would include any information whatsoever about location, course or direction.

The only agencies with access to satellite information are not known for sharing data, in any case.

61 posted on 03/13/2014 3:47:09 PM PDT by publius911 ( At least Nixon had the good g race to resign!)
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To: rottndog
All it takes fire-wise is one if you've ever had one inflight. I don't remember the requirements, but it was hooked to the main bus. The problem with leaving it on is that everytime it gets interrogated it responds. That would cause a real safety of flight issue. If there was a better way, that didn't cost horrendous amounts of money, it would have been done.

More automation might be the fix for this case, but it will cause more weaknesses that can be exploited. The transponder in this case is a transceiver it has to be controllable. If it couldn't be paused or turned off, anytime you input the code would activate all the codes in between.

62 posted on 03/13/2014 3:51:20 PM PDT by xone
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To: CedarDave

http://www.rolls-royce.com/about/technology/systems_tech/monitoring_systems.jsp


63 posted on 03/13/2014 3:51:20 PM PDT by HereInTheHeartland (Obama lied; our healthcare died.)
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To: publius911

Probably correct that location, course and direction would not be included; however, air data may very well be included, for example, pressure altitude, static air temp etc. You might get some clues from that info...


64 posted on 03/13/2014 3:53:36 PM PDT by IFly4Him
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To: cynwoody
why wasn’t the Rolls-Royce engine health monitor also working?

What make you think it wasn't?

It doesn't send data continuously; it sends at "significant events" (takeoff, achieving cruise), or every 30 minutes.

If the plane nosedived into the water, the monitor might not be able to transmit after that.

If it exploded, it might not be able to transmit.

65 posted on 03/13/2014 3:57:18 PM PDT by Izzy Dunne (Hello, I'm a TAGLINE virus. Please help me spread by copying me into YOUR tag line.)
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To: Revolting cat!

Probably right (hopefully) - ‘cause if it really is a stolen 777 there is all kind of mischievous that that could be used for.

But this definitely is a weird one! Typically a crash involves a fire and/or swaths of floating debris. If it crashed on land there would be smoke.

Also, the Malaysian government seems hell bent on issuing odd and/or confusing statements.

The weirdness of this situation is what is setting everyone off. Certainly the spy agencies are now running through possible scenarios - as they should be doing that - it’s what they’re paid for.


66 posted on 03/13/2014 3:59:04 PM PDT by LibertyLA (fighting libtards and other giant government enablers!)
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To: publius911

The satellites that the signal reached would give rough heading...if we’re talking 4 hours that would be plenty of time for some satellites to become “over the horizon” and new ones to become viewable ..


67 posted on 03/13/2014 4:00:34 PM PDT by Neidermeyer (I used to be disgusted , now I try to be amused.)
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To: keat
I propose summary executions of any person who offers conjecture as fact regarding this incident

There goes half the news TV reporters (Not that that is a BAD thing...)

68 posted on 03/13/2014 4:03:39 PM PDT by Izzy Dunne (Hello, I'm a TAGLINE virus. Please help me spread by copying me into YOUR tag line.)
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To: TalBlack
Some fault as yet unknown which brings about sudden absolute failure of the plane?

A "suitcase" nuke, put aboard by the stolen-passport guys from Iran:

Would that be detectable from land-based stations? Vietnam and Malaysia might not be up for it.

Detectable from U.S. satellites ? I don't know. It wouldn't have to be huge (megatons). < / speculation >

69 posted on 03/13/2014 4:11:38 PM PDT by Izzy Dunne (Hello, I'm a TAGLINE virus. Please help me spread by copying me into YOUR tag line.)
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To: Izzy Dunne
It doesn't send data continuously; it sends at "significant events" (takeoff, achieving cruise), or every 30 minutes.

Well, that's what it wasn't doing.

However, post 25 indicates the reason may be that Malaysian Airlines didn't subscribe to the engine monitoring service. In which case, the satellite link was active but didn't have engine data to transmit. Of course, the satellite link remaining active means it probably hadn't crashed.

70 posted on 03/13/2014 4:14:11 PM PDT by cynwoody
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To: C210N

The key to this “mystery” is to find it, before it finds us.


If it was hijacked and flew somewhere else, that is a good point.


71 posted on 03/13/2014 4:14:34 PM PDT by little jeremiah (Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point. CSLewis)
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To: Red Badger

Except if it was terrorists taking hte plan someplace else, no one has heard from them.


72 posted on 03/13/2014 4:18:20 PM PDT by little jeremiah (Courage is not simply one of the virtues, but the form of every virtue at the testing point. CSLewis)
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To: CedarDave

I have a theory. I think the plane was hijacked by militant environmentalists and flown to the South Pole. They were embarrassed by the ship that got stuck in the ice and they will stay in Antarctica until they finally find irrefutable proof of Global Warming which they will report to the media as soon as they gather the evidence they need.

Oh, the passenger/hostages? Converts just as soon as they confess their sins and become true believers. Those who refuse to convert become the food source for the others.


73 posted on 03/13/2014 4:26:10 PM PDT by OrangeHoof (2001-2008: "Dissent Is Patriotism!" 2009-2016: "Dissent Is Racism!")
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To: publius911
I can't accept that any engine performance data transmitted... would include ... location, course or direction...

I would expect it to. These aircraft have a web network of interconnected busses that would have lat/lon and ground speed info. These busses are ARINC 429 busses, and are akin to CANBUS on cars. When transmitting engine data, it would naturally have identifying information with it to help correlate with other data streams, which would include timestamps and lat/lon. Lat/lon on these reports would be almost certainly present.

74 posted on 03/13/2014 4:26:55 PM PDT by C210N (When people fear government there is tyranny; when government fears people there is liberty)
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To: Sarah Barracuda

John Nance said that there were two different tracking/ radar systems that were turned off at different times. He also said that whoever did it had to have knowledge of a 777.


75 posted on 03/13/2014 4:36:47 PM PDT by Jaded (Really? Seriously?)
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To: CedarDave

I have heard perfectly sane people, not ones for conspiracy theories, say they think it was hijacked and is somewhere hidden to be used in a future terrorist attack. That is the scariest thought ever.

I think some government from Malaysia, China, or whomever, knows what happened, whatever it is, and is hiding information. I also think the proper US officials who are investigating need to get their heads out of their asses and start to seriously and aggressively look into the above scenario. They need to stop denying this could be related to terrorism. (this is not “workplace violence”)


76 posted on 03/13/2014 4:39:25 PM PDT by jodster36
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To: Izzy Dunne
Detectable from U.S. satellites ?

US GPS satellites carry sensors to detect atmospheric or near-earth nuclear explosions.

http://www.dtic.mil/descriptivesum/Y2013/AirForce/stamped/0305913F_7_PB_2013.pdf

Nukes have a characteristic double flash. The initial flash is quickly occluded by the expanding shock wave, which is composed of opaque, ionized gas. Although the shock wave is bright, it's not as bright as its cause. But, as the shock wave expands, its density and opacity decrease, allowing the central fireball to shine through and causing a second peak in brightness.

77 posted on 03/13/2014 4:41:07 PM PDT by cynwoody
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To: Jaded

Yep heard that report on our local ABC station..question is, where do you hide a plane this size and what happened to the passengers, did they kill them? Are they being held as collateral? They had a guy on Greta’s show who said you don’t need a large landing strip to land a 777 but to take off again would be a problem


78 posted on 03/13/2014 4:42:51 PM PDT by Sarah Barracuda
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To: Aqua225

“To think he would have had a sudden onset of passion about something outside of the world of commercial aviation would seem far-fetched to me.”

Agreed...
Sudden Jihad Syndrome from someone living out his dream, and enjoting it, is pretty far-fetched.

Now, the co-pilot, on the other hand....
I still think it is terrorism, but not from this crew.


79 posted on 03/13/2014 4:44:49 PM PDT by tcrlaf (Well, it is what the Sheeple voted for....)
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To: keat
That is a good call. The only thing we do know is that a plane is missing.

The threads are filled with about 2% real substance and 98% paranoid crap right now . I never knew there were so many secret airports in the world.

80 posted on 03/13/2014 5:02:41 PM PDT by pfflier
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