[ransomnote]

You are correct. Failure to receive the last ACARS report probably means that the plane landed without the gear being dropped.

41 posted on Friday, March 14, 2014 10:15:44 AM by robert14 (cng)
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Either the ACARS was disabled or landing without gear or being taken down by military means by a nation that doesn’t want to admit to it. Not just international tensions but also the impact on air travel in general. For passengers, contemplating hijackers was bad enough - but the “solution” (shooting a passenger plane down) is unpleasant as well.

[virgil]

Just relaying some information here. I heard a discussion on the radio a few minutes ago and they were talking to someone from NTSB. The NTSB guy said that one of the transponders that was turned off is not that easy to disable (like flipping a switch). Pilots are not trained to do it and it would take someone with a maintenance background to do it...somebody with specialized knowledge. So, it had to be deliberate.

[MRadtke]

So the pilot accomplished whatever task he had to do, then ditched the plane at a prearranged location. He then escaped with the aid of a nearby waiting boat. This does sound possible.