Thread: Germanwings plane crashes in southern France, 148 feared dead: officials

The emergency response by the french looks very professional and efficient. They have already overnight prepared for arrival of family members today. Emergency beds and food are ready, even german and spanish speaking aides will be ready to help.

Originally Posted by Seekingasylum

Pilot error, usually, and an inability to deal competently with anomalies.

Nope, this plane was hacked.

8 minutes before the crash the plane began a perfectly controlled descent from 38,000 feet to 6,800 feet. It never deviated from it’s course. And then it flew right into a mountain. And shattered into a billion pieces.

why no naming of the pilots and crew?
whats to hide ?

Worse than the malaysians in giving info

Originally Posted by nigelandjan

There is a whisper of one Israeli on board

possibly a couple o brits also.

News here in Oz said that an Airbus takes off or lands somewhere in the world every 2.5 seconds.

Originally Posted by Boon Mee

Originally Posted by Seekingasylum

Pilot error, usually, and an inability to deal competently with anomalies.

Nope, this plane was hacked.

8 minutes before the crash the plane began a perfectly controlled descent from 38,000 feet to 6,800 feet. It never deviated from it’s course. And then it flew right into a mountain. And shattered into a billion pieces.

Originally Posted by Boon Mee

this plane was hacked

A pilot on TV this morning said there have been instances where the flight control computer unexpectantly goes into anti stall mode which automatically forces the plane into a glideslope with pilot unable to override. Could have been but too soon to speculate. Black box is badly damaged but data could be recovered.

A software bug. Not really a hack.

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Originally Posted by Boon Mee

Originally Posted by Seekingasylum

Pilot error, usually, and an inability to deal competently with anomalies.

Nope, this plane was hacked.

8 minutes before the crash the plane began a perfectly controlled descent from 38,000 feet to 6,800 feet. It never deviated from it’s course. And then it flew right into a mountain. And shattered into a billion pieces.

Not so fast. All the reports I'm reading state that there was indeed an eight minute descent and a slight course deviation without any communication with ATC. The course deviation and descent were observed and attempts to contact the plane were made....no response from the cockpit....and then it flew straight into a mountain.

There is some confusion because some reports say there was a course deviation while others do not mention it, but the eight minute descent is consistent.

Eight minutes is a long time. If these reports are accurate, that's a pretty weird set of circumstances No word from the crew, no distress call, no indication of anything wrong. They have found the cockpit voice recorder damaged but not the other "Black box" yet.

All Germanwing flights have been temporarily cancelled because the flight crews are refusing to fly. Very strange happenings.

Hmmmm... Seems A320s crash quite easily. Last 5 odd were 320s.
737 seem not to.
If it ein't Boeing, it ein't going. I'm not getting on another 320.

Originally Posted by Norton

Originally Posted by Boon Mee

this plane was hacked

A pilot on TV this morning said there have been instances where the flight control computer unexpectantly goes into anti stall mode which automatically forces the plane into a glideslope with pilot unable to override. Could have been but too soon to speculate. Black box is badly damaged but data could be recovered.

A software bug. Not really a hack.

Which could lead many into suggestive speculation towards the ability to allow the pilots to fly manually, instead of becoming forcibly dependent on the fucking computer systems -

Originally Posted by koman

no indication of anything wrong.

I think an aircraft descending to below the height of the mountain it's flying straight at is an indication of something wrong.

Don't you?

flight control computer unexpectantly goes into anti stall mode which automatically forces the plane into a glideslope with pilot unable to override

One would think that if the plane went into some kind of anti-stall nose down glide, and the crew could not override it, a distress call would go out... or at least give some kind of response to the calls from ATC......they had eight minutes.

Any automated system than can not be over-ridden by the cockpit crew seems like an accident waiting to happen.... why would they design something like that to transport hundreds of people around at 35,000 ft...?

Originally Posted by harrybarracuda

Originally Posted by koman

no indication of anything wrong.

I think an aircraft descending to below the height of the mountain it's flying straight at is an indication of something wrong.

Don't you?

I meant no report from the aircraft....of course the ATC guys figured out that something was wrong. That's why they were trying to contact the crew.

Originally Posted by koman

flight control computer unexpectantly goes into anti stall mode which automatically forces the plane into a glideslope with pilot unable to override

One would think that if the plane went into some kind of anti-stall nose down glide, and the crew could not override it, a distress call would go out... or at least give some kind of response to the calls from ATC......they had eight minutes.

Any automated system than can not be over-ridden by the cockpit crew seems like an accident waiting to happen.... why would they design something like that to transport hundreds of people around at 35,000 ft...?

They cn be over ridden or turned off.

The most logical assumption as to why the pilots didn't respond to ATC or make a distress call is that they weren't able to do so.

Of course fertile imaginations will run riot at the possible reasons for that.

Pilot incapacitation is one possibility.

Communications equipment failure is another.

Abduction by time travellers a la Millennium will probably be next on Booners list.

Originally Posted by Necron99

They cn be over ridden or turned off.

That's what I've always assumed, but I was responding to this previous post about some pilot saying.....

"A pilot on TV this morning said there have been instances where the flight control computer unexpectantly goes into anti stall mode which automatically forces the plane into a glideslope with pilot unable to override"

I am intrigued as to why the informed felt able to announce 'no survivors' so quickly.

French airforce say they scrambled a Mirage 2000 but it arrived too late to help !!

Originally Posted by koman

Originally Posted by Necron99

They cn be over ridden or turned off.

That's what I've always assumed, but I was responding to this previous post about some pilot saying.....

"A pilot on TV this morning said there have been instances where the flight control computer unexpectantly goes into anti stall mode which automatically forces the plane into a glideslope with pilot unable to override"

Instances that didn't end with the plane flying into the ground.....

Originally Posted by Bower

I am intrigued as to why the informed felt able to announce 'no survivors' so quickly.

French airforce say they scrambled a Mirage 2000 but it arrived too late to help !!

The jet pilot describing a 12 hectare debris field from a plane flying itself into a mountain at 700 km per hour leads to a pretty good assumption of no survivors I think.


Unless Chuck Norris was on board...

Originally Posted by Necron99

Originally Posted by Bower

I am intrigued as to why the informed felt able to announce 'no survivors' so quickly.

French airforce say they scrambled a Mirage 2000 but it arrived too late to help !!

The jet pilot describing a 12 hectare debris field from a plane flying itself into a mountain at 700 km per hour leads to a pretty good assumption of no survivors I think.


Unless Chuck Norris was on board...

According to Associated Press writer Sylvie Corbet in Paris, The French airforce jet pilot did not find the location of the crash, the crash site was later found by helicopters who described debris across a large area.

Some military aviation experts say that an Italian military plane switched its transponder to the emergency code #7700 at 10.35, right near the site where the Germanwings plane began its descent, the Daily Mail reports. Investigators should be able to work out whether the incident was "a coincidence or possibly had some relevance to the passenger jet's demise", the publication says.

Originally Posted by koman

All Germanwing flights have been temporarily cancelled because the flight crews are refusing to fly. Very strange happenings.

I find that strange too. However the head of the pilots union Cockpit stated clearly it was not about safety issues. It was in honor of their friends and colleagues. Staff of Lufthansa stepped in and all except one flight was flying

Originally Posted by the dogcatcher

Hmmmm... Seems A320s crash quite easily. Last 5 odd were 320s.
737 seem not to.

Statistics say otherwise. It is one of the safest planes. Just a huge number of them in the air.