Posted on 09/14/2011 7:12:20 PM PDT by MindBender26
I wonder what form(s) of Mg were found?
No that was not my contention one little bit
Not arguing with you, but could you please post a link to that “official record?”
Thanks
The explosive residue is covered on pages 258-59. It's downplayed and dismissed, but it's there.
The contention is that no 747 had ever suffered such a spontaneous combustion. Manilla and Thailand were both 737’s and were also surrounded by suspicions of terrorism.
TWA 800 was the only alleged 747 CWT explosion in aviation history.
After a prolonged, confounding search of the ocean floor, investigators have finally found scientific evidence that an explosive device was detonated inside the passenger cabin of Trans World Airlines Flight 800, senior Federal officials said yesterday.
Chemists at the Federal Bureau of Investigation crime laboratory in Washington have found traces of PETN, a chemical in plastic explosives, on a piece of wreckage retrieved from the jet's passenger cabin between Rows 17 and 27, according to three senior officials deeply involved in the investigation. They spoke on the condition of anonymity.
While the new finding provides evidence that the plane was destroyed by an explosive device, a senior official noted that PETN, or pentaerythritol tetranitrate, was an explosive component commonly found in many bombs and surface-to-air missiles, making it impossible, for now, to know for sure which type of explosive device destroyed the Boeing 747, killing all 230 people aboard.
Nonetheless, the discovery meets the F.B.I.'s previously stated standard for declaring that the plane was brought down by a criminal act. In loss of life, the downing of T.W.A. Flight 800 would stand as the most serious crime in American history.
In '81 I was the last controller to talk to Happy32, a KC135 returning to O'Hare.When I switched him to O'Hare Approach, he didn't reply, but that's not all that unusual. A couple of minutes later O'Hare asked if I switched him, 'cuz he wasn't talking to him & didn't see him on radar. He had exploded about 30 miles NW of O'Hare, the cockpit came down in a schoolyard where a Christmas program was in progress.
At the time we had several furloughed airline pilots working at the Center as assistants, many were also Guard pilots and knew the crew. It was hard to listen to the tapes with them, knowing they had lost friends, and were hearing their last words.
I was naturally involved in the investigation and it turns out the Illinois Guard was the last unit the had not retrofitted a VHF antenna that was chin mounted, with connection through the belly tank. When they keyed the mike to acknowledge my instruction to switch to O'Hare, the loose connection arced, causing the tank to explode.
So I get real irritated when I hear someone with no aviation knowledge sat the tanks can't explode.
This supposed evidence was later attributed to explosives and explovies-exposed materiel carried on the A/C by military personnel during previous charters.
Happens all the time here.
Remember “Michael?”
You should see some of the legal opinions posted!
That works both ways. After August 23, 1996 they stopped talking about explosive residue and started talking about idiopathic external sparks causing the center-wing tank to explode.
This supposed evidence was later attributed to explosives and explovies-exposed materiel carried on the A/C by military personnel during previous charters.
And leaking bomb bags in St. Louis. And don't forget seat glue. I know, I remember the "anything but a bomb" grasps like they were yesterday.
I concur. Especially since all three were likely terrorist bombings. But the NTSB ruled it was the result of a design flaw specific to the 747-100: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/893705.stm.
So I get real irritated when I hear someone with no aviation knowledge sat the tanks can't explode.
Was that the Wonder Lake crash in '82? What did they ultimately rule the cause to be? I thought it was believed to be weather (lightning) related?
That's the one.
There was initial speculation it was weather related, as there were rare winter thunderstorms that the crew and I were trying to avoid. One of the strange aspects was the great disparity between the weather depictions on my radar and what the crew was seeing on theirs. As mine had been accurate all night, it was decided that the airborne unit was faulty, or was incorrectly used by the crew, who normally flew with different equipment in their airline roles.
The subsequent investigation showed the source of ignition to have been the VHF comm antenna connector.
That has to be a tough memory to haul around. I can’t imagine.
Not really. My FAA career included a 'body count' of 51, eight fatal crashes. There was nothing I could do to change the outcome in any of them.
In order to work the heavy Chicago traffic effectively, you had to have a 'separate aircraft' mindset, rather than a 'separate people' one. There was very little thought given to the 'people' aspect, except in cases like this, where I had to interact with the victim's friends. Take a few hours off to fill out paperwork, then back to the radar.
Nowadays, snot-nosed union punks get 30 days paid leave if they screw up and get two aircraft closer than 5 miles. I can't imagine what they get for a fatal.
Sure am glad I'm not there anymore.
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