Malaysian Airlines MH370

[onetrack]

That report is the ultimate in covering all the ground already covered, but not offering too much by way of additional information, above the vast amount we have already been told, or what has been discussed, ad infinitum.

 

I feel for those poor buggers "on-the-job", in the sea search. On pages 127 and 128 ...

 

"on 13 July 2016 Fugro Equator recorded a combined wave and swell measurement of 24.03 m (trough to peak). This occurred in a 12 hour period where four other waves over 20 m were experienced, all on a 65 m vessel, whilst

 

operating at a latitude of 38°S" ..."

 

 

As always, what is left out of the report, is the interesting areas.

 

It's interesting to note the ATSB says the aircraft turned 40 deg to the right, then 180 deg to the left, directly after the last radio contact.

 

Surely this indicates an aircraft under a substantial degree of control, and shows that flight control systems were very largely operational.

 

Very little said about the aircraft altitudes, or variations in altitude, after disappearing from the original flight path.

 

There were wildly-varying figures produced initially, and those wild altitude numbers, figured prominently in many promulgated "scenarios".

 

The report says;

 

"The limited fidelity of the PSR tracking data allowed the aircraft’s speed, location, and altitude to be approximated from IGARI onwards."

 

Nothing is said as regards what level of variation is in that "approximation"? Surely that is a very relevant point, and that level of "approximation" would play an important part in the fuel burn calculations?

 

The report references the official Malaysian MH370 "factual flight report" at the following website ("Complete Factual Information Document") -

 

http://www.mh370.gov.my/index.php/en/media2/transcript/category/13-mh370-safety-investigation-public

 

The above report is very comprehensive - but the radar return charts are quite poor, and rather deficient. One can only surmise this was because no-one was taking much notice of a wayward flight.

 

Yet, the Malaysian report is quite factual about altitudes after MH370's disappearance from its designated initial flight path.

 

Pages 2 to 5 of the report give this "factual" information;

 

9 minutes after the military-radar-observed, 40 deg right turn, the aircraft is at 35,700 feet. Only just outside FL350 allowed buffer, but possibly still within it, due to radar inaccuracy at that distance?

 

15 minutes after initial 40 deg right turn, the aircraft is engaged in height fluctuation between 31,100 and 33,000 ft. Human input, or flight control damage? The latter seems unlikely.

 

At 18 minutes after the initial right turn, the last altitude record is mentioned - 32,800 feet.

 

MH370 was radar tracked for 61 minutes, until it disappeared "abruptly", 10NM after waypoint MEKAR, on Airways route N571. Why is there no aircraft altitude mentioned in the last 43 minutes of radar tracking?

 

Did it stay at around 33,000 feet fairly steadily after the initial 18 minutes? I would have thought this would have been important to discuss or mention.

 

A commercial aircraft followed MH370 along flight route N571, around 33NM behind it. Did the crew of that aircraft sight anything relating to MH370, or was that entire sector in heavy cloud?

 

They could have at least said the commercial crew indicated they saw nothing, if that was the case.

 

There is also not even the slightest reference to JORN, and whether it was operational?

 

It seems pretty obvious, that the Defence Dept is being pretty aggressive here, and doesn't want anyone to know that they have a major tracking asset that is only manned on occasional alternate weekdays, or when someone in the North of Australia accidentally spots an "incoming" NK "present", and reports it?