So .. what about a foolish speculation .. that in fact ... AF447 was not in very bad turbulences at the time of the event ???
Imho, this is NOT "foolish speculation", it is just plain evidence.
Consider these two points :
- read the LH crew (on the same route a few minutes earlier) statement : standard ITCZ crossing routine ;
- obviously, the "fasten belt" sign was "OFF" : hence the number of bodies recovered (SLF
and CC), galley condition etc.. ;
all this suggests that the ride was not too rough.
'Captain's rest' is rostered and taken as rostered in some companies which I find bizarre!
From what we have here, (a routine ITCZ crossing), there is, IMHO, nothing "
bizarre" with the captain having his rest time.
F/O's are fully qualified to deal with this kind of event.
If the captain MUST be on the F/D each time bad weather is forecasted, then why bother with R/P ?
About sleepiness in the cockpit :
It is hard to escape the conclusion that these guys were caught out somehow. Despite a significant weather system in their path. And despite (I presume) a degree of radio traffic that other aircraft were diverging from their track.
Once you have completed your selcal check with the ATC in charge, you have
NO "degree of radio trafic" for weather deviations by other A/C.
Requests and clearances go through HF,
which you do not monitor, or through CPDLC.