> >imagine a fighter jet flying upside down straight
> >and level at high speed. pilot pulls back on the
> >stick, jet accelerates downward at several g's.
>
> IAN: But your jet still has thrust...
well, it is not necessarily under thrust but it would need forward velocity. partially agreed. {8-]
> FL800 in the CIA video shows each engine flame out just before
> it reaches the peak of it's rocket-like climb,
> so we're talking about a fall without thrust
> and almost no initial horizontal velocity.
i admit i have not studied the cia version of the fl800 story. the details of what happened after the explosion have never interested me much because there must be a great deal of guesswork.
but when the thing first happened, i thought i recall the investigators
proposing an explosion that originated *inside* the fuel tank.
this i found most improbable, even if an ignition source were to
be found. i think it was mike lorrey who described patching leaky fuel
tanks in aircraft with gum. {8^D that makes me howl just thinking
about it. that would suggest an ignition *outside* the tank
which presents a whole nuther set of questions. either way ian,
i am partially with you in that i think the official version
underexplains
the explosion. im not too concerned about the 29 second plunge tho.
i figure they estimated here, guessed a little there. ive seen plenty
of
reports like that. either way, it does little to improve the morale of
of one like me who flies on the durn things a lot. {8-[ spike