Originally Posted by
Lonewolf_50
I will comment on your "not much else" line.
(1) This was mentioned
some pages back, but ... given the altitude, "high hot heavy," and location, another possibility is a bunch of birds being eaten by two engines.
...
(2) Here's another one that is
far less likely, but that also fits: bad fuel.
While I wouldn't rule out anything at this point in time at least the FR24 data indicates that engines seemed to deliver power. Aircraft sped up to 383kts but was apparently never able to gain altitude. Even considering ambiguities and inaccuracies in FR24 data it appears the never got over 1000ft above ground while spearing along at a breathtaking 383kts. That is fighter jet low attack profile and does not really point big time towards engine trouble. The level of devastation also points towards a very high energy impact. This also rather contradicts any loss of propulsion scenarios.
Sadly, this carries many similarities with the other MAX Crash.