I have a question:
the news media has described the 3 minute drop into the ocean as having been 'horrifying' for the passengers. However, if indeed the pilots didn't even realize that the plane was stalled and was descending so quickly, could it be that the passengers were completely unaware of anything being wrong during their final minutes?
You can only feel a fall during the initial acceleration. And surely if the pilots could feel that 10 000fpm decent then they would know they must be stalling and stop the nose up attitude inputs.