Re:MH370 pilot made many turns and speed changes, new report...
by kelnos on Wednesday May 05, 2021 @02:34PM
(#27053859)
> I do imagine that some passengers and crew must have noticed something weird about the in flight maps.
There are a few theories floating around about how this happened that suggest a possible narrative that explains this. Essentially: by the time the in-flight maps would have shown anything weird, it was too late, and shortly after that, everyone outside the cockpit would have died. My paraphrased version:
Right before Zaharie made his first (unscheduled) turn, he could have gotten the first officer to leave the cockpit, probably by telling him that one of the cabin crew needed to see him in person about something (the first officer was a young rising star in the airline, and likely would have followed his superior's instructions without question). He'd then lock the cockpit door, put on an oxygen mask, and depressurized the cabin, maybe even cutting power to the cabin lights to make things more confusing.
Before anyone could react, he'd start the first turn. Based on simulations done, it was a pretty violent turn, pushing the plane to its limits; the first officer and many/all of the cabin crew would have been on their feet, and would have been knocked around to the point that they may not have been able to get oxygen masks on in time to prevent unconsciousness. Even if any of them, including the first officer, could get a mask on, there's not much they could do. They would assume there was an emergency, but the first officer would be unable to get to the cockpit (locked, plus the need to be tethered to an oxygen mask's supply), and the cabin crew would generally not try to get into the cockpit in that situation, but would attempt to secure the cabin and do their best to manage the passengers.
Most passengers would probably be able to get their masks on (if they were already belted into their seats), but the oxygen in those masks runs out in some surprisingly-small number of minutes: in the event of depressurization the masks are a stopgap measure to keep everyone conscious/alive while the pilot descends to an altitude where the masks aren't necessary, but in this case the pilot intentionally did not do that. Most, if not all, passengers would follow the steps drilled into them by the safety video: put their oxygen masks on, help anyone next to them, and stay belted into their seats. They'd assume that there was a legitimate issue with the plane, not that the pilot was trying to kill them.
Even if anyone noticed the in-flight maps during that time, they wouldn't have much time to puzzle over it, and would likely assume that the weird course was a result of whatever emergency was going on in the cockpit.
There are a few theories floating around about how this happened that suggest a possible narrative that explains this. Essentially: by the time the in-flight maps would have shown anything weird, it was too late, and shortly after that, everyone outside the cockpit would have died. My paraphrased version:
Right before Zaharie made his first (unscheduled) turn, he could have gotten the first officer to leave the cockpit, probably by telling him that one of the cabin crew needed to see him in person about something (the first officer was a young rising star in the airline, and likely would have followed his superior's instructions without question). He'd then lock the cockpit door, put on an oxygen mask, and depressurized the cabin, maybe even cutting power to the cabin lights to make things more confusing.
Before anyone could react, he'd start the first turn. Based on simulations done, it was a pretty violent turn, pushing the plane to its limits; the first officer and many/all of the cabin crew would have been on their feet, and would have been knocked around to the point that they may not have been able to get oxygen masks on in time to prevent unconsciousness. Even if any of them, including the first officer, could get a mask on, there's not much they could do. They would assume there was an emergency, but the first officer would be unable to get to the cockpit (locked, plus the need to be tethered to an oxygen mask's supply), and the cabin crew would generally not try to get into the cockpit in that situation, but would attempt to secure the cabin and do their best to manage the passengers.
Most passengers would probably be able to get their masks on (if they were already belted into their seats), but the oxygen in those masks runs out in some surprisingly-small number of minutes: in the event of depressurization the masks are a stopgap measure to keep everyone conscious/alive while the pilot descends to an altitude where the masks aren't necessary, but in this case the pilot intentionally did not do that. Most, if not all, passengers would follow the steps drilled into them by the safety video: put their oxygen masks on, help anyone next to them, and stay belted into their seats. They'd assume that there was a legitimate issue with the plane, not that the pilot was trying to kill them.
Even if anyone noticed the in-flight maps during that time, they wouldn't have much time to puzzle over it, and would likely assume that the weird course was a result of whatever emergency was going on in the cockpit.