[EternalHope]

I agree with you completely. Smoke in the cockpit is the only thing I can think of. Any pilots on this thread that think you would have hit this building dead center, full throttle, straight and level on a clear day. Sound off.

Good call. With enough smoke in the cockpit you might not see the building, but you probably would not be breathing either unless you were on oxygen (was this plane even equiped with oxygen?). With smoke like that, I might put the plane on autopilot to keep it straight and level. None of which would explain the perfectly targeted impact, other than amazingly bad luck. "Accident" still sounds like pure BS to me.

So, ANY PILOTS WITH IDEAS ON HOW TO HIT A BUILDING, SQUARE ON, STRAIGHT AND LEVEL, ON A CLEAR DAY, BY ACCIDENT?

Sound off. Let's hear it.

[codebreaker]

No reason the guy should be acclerating into a skyscraper.

[Utopia]

So, ANY PILOTS WITH IDEAS ON HOW TO HIT A BUILDING, SQUARE ON, STRAIGHT AND LEVEL, ON A CLEAR DAY, BY ACCIDENT?

I can't think of any scenario that qualifies as an "accident".

[DJ88]

I would say that you are a pilot, is that correct? From reading your posts, it sounds as if you are. Please confirm. ;-)

[Dead Dog]

Just like on a landing, use your ailerons to counter crosswind, and rudder to keep alignment with the direction of flight. If you want to look good, otherwise just crab.

[jae471]

The Plane had oxygen. Senecas have a ceiling of about 25,000ft. Oxygen is required above 12,000ft. Wether or not it was in use is another issue.

[texlok]

So, ANY PILOTS WITH IDEAS ON HOW TO HIT A BUILDING, SQUARE ON, STRAIGHT AND LEVEL, ON A CLEAR DAY, BY ACCIDENT?

You answered your own question :

With enough smoke in the cockpit you might not see the building, but you probably would not be breathing either unless you were on oxygen (was this plane even equiped with oxygen?). With smoke like that, I might put the plane on autopilot to keep it straight and level.

[bootless]

Hi EternalHope,

I'm a PPL/ASEL pilot, and haven't looked at the whole thread yet. If the plane hit the building squarely, wings straight and level, I'd be a whole lot more suspicious than someone doing a city tour, getting too close to a building for whatever stupid reason ("Hey y'all, watch this!"), and hitting during a bank.

Smoke in the cockpit - good thought for an electrical fire, primer pump wiggled loose and some of the leaking fuel caught fire, etc. If they're at building level in Milan (what's the elevation?), I doubt he'd be on O2.

Will be back after I read the particulars.