[Steve_Seattle]

"straight and level"

Payne Stewart's plane flew straight and level with no pilot for more than an hour. Even an out of control plane could be straight and level during part of its flight. If there were engine problems and there was smoke in the cockpit, the pilot could have been incapacited or blinded.

[ctdonath2]

Payne Stewart's plane flew straight and level with no pilot for more than an hour.

That was because it was set on autopilot and operating properly - at high altitude over non-urban terrain. One does not set the autopilot to fly a mere 27 stories above ground directly over a high-rise urban zone.