The story proposes that it crash landed on the ocean, giving a little time to get the life vest. As suggested was that there may have been icing on some key part. Even though the pilot had many hours of experience, how much experience with ice would he have had flying in the tropics??
Yes, that was my thought, as well. A nearly intact (well, a good portion of the aircraft appears to be in one piece, anyway) and a body wearing a life vest does suggest an attempted ditching, and I think icing could have created the emergency.
“how much experience with ice would he have had flying in the tropics??”
At 30K+ feet the outside air temperature is well near or below freezing even if you’re flying over the tropics.
Standard lapse rate for temperature is the same in the tropics. Every jet flying more than 100 miles is in potential icing temperature, on every flight.