AirAsia jet may have made safe landing on sea before sinking, experts says

[Omaha Steve]

Source: Faux News

The pilot of AirAsia Flight 8501 may have landed the doomed plane on the ocean surface, only to have it sink in high seas, according to aviation experts, who cited the intact condition of several bodies as possible evidence for the theory.

"The emergency locator transmitter (ELT) would work on impact, be that land, sea or the sides of a mountain, and my analysis is it didn't work because there was no major impact during landing," Dudi Sudibyo, a senior editor of aviation magazine Angkasa, told the AFP. "The pilot managed to land it on the sea's surface."

The theory that passengers were alive at some point after impact appeared to be supported by Jusman Syafii Djamal, the former transport minister, who said that the fact that the emergency door was found intact may be evidence that the door was opened.

The Airbus A320 crashed into the Java Sea on Sunday with 162 people on board. Sixteen bodies have been recovered so far. Seven were announced Friday morning, six of which were found by a U.S. Navy ship, said Suryadi B. Supriyadi, operation coordinator for the National Search and Rescue Agency.

FULL story at link.

Fox News' Edmund DeMarche and The Associated Press contributed to this report


Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2015/01/02/airasia-jet-may-have-made-safe-landing-on-sea-before-sinking-expert-says/

[FLPanhandle]

1. I'd rather die of a sudden high speed impact than drown in my seat.

Hope they find the flight recorders.

[cosmicone]

4. +1 n/t

[NutmegYankee]

2. Autopsy may answer that question.

Death by impact would have stopped breathing and bodies wouldn't show water intake into the lungs.

[ColesCountyDem]

3. Yes, it should help in determing what occurred.

A thorough forensic post-mortem is invaluable.

[cosmicone]

5. Also, if there was no major impact

the pulmonary veins would remain unruptured.

[Thor_MN]

6. Take a human body to ocean floor depths and there will be water in the lungs.

The pressure of the water will ensure that.

[NutmegYankee]

9. I was thinking the ones found floating.

But I believe there are ways to tell if it's postmortem water intrusion.

[Jesus Malverde]

7. I that is true that is strange their were no Mayday calls...nt.

[groundloop]

8. A magazine editor and a politician are hardly 'experts'

I read on an aviation site that radar data showed the plane climbing at an extraordinary rate, far beyond what the plane was capable of - that's pretty strong evidence that it was caught in violent updrafts in a thunderstorm. I have to believe this talk of landing safely on the waters' surface is purely fantasy in order to grab market share (edit to add: the fact that it's Fox "News" says it all).

[SoapBox]

10. I strongly doubt that the aircraft made a gentle, controlled water landing.

...such stories as this are disgraceful.