ADS B;
Just which transponder was active is unknown, and what air data sources it was using also unknown. Just in case 'unreliable airspeed" had occurred, (usually this fault may well have included altitude)
Let's not read too much (or anything at all) into the radar24 kind of source. (on some of the latest systems, and this plane sure was the latest, GPS data may have been providing , but that's unlikely in my view although I don't know the ground station resources)
Flight Controls;
The 737 does not have any system capable of denying or overriding pilots control of the basic elevator/aileron/rudder and even FADEC, on a Boeing,does not override within the range needed to essentially have full thrust control. So.....
Flight conditions; (IMC/VMC).....instrument/visual control
If this plane was in VMC, there is no reason (except structural failure) why the crew could not continue in a 'rough-and-ready' way and return more or less safely. Pretty well all pilots have done the 'no instruments circuit' in the simulator. It's rough and ready but doable. In IMC there is a different dynamic, requiring the pilots to ignore their motion sensations and obey the instruments! This assumes
they are able to evaluate which ones are accurate, but the plane is certificated with reliable independent standby essential instruments to assist this evaluation .
Should controlled flight be lost though,the moment the plane comes out into VMC again the crew can instantly regain orientation and proceed in the 'no instruments' emergency mode.
I have no idea, like all of us, what caused this terrible accident. But let's not read too much into what ADSB monitoring sites report.
Last edited by T28B; 31st Oct 2018 at 18:20.
Reason: awful formatting corrected