Regarding the endless thread concerning 'ligne de vol': I have not read anyone offering the possibility that the pressure hull and main spar, plus remaining attachments, just happened to hit water horizontal and bottom-down, ie. it could have tumbled and rolled from FL300+. The initial wreckage spread would still have been compact, viz Lockerbie.
Yes, this was spoken of the first day of the release of the prelim report, but got lost in the endless spin discussion.
metaphor = a falling leaf. How does it hit the ground?