Originally Posted by
justthisonce
What ruled out the possibility that the Bonin guy was not suicidal?
This is a reasonable question, given that several crashes over the years have had such implications, so I'll let it stand.
However, please let's not venture into conspiracist realms .. JT
Will do JT.
The CVR transcript looks all wrong for a deliberate attempt to sabotage the flight. Bonin's words reflect a mindset of being gradually overwhelmed by a problem, and increasing anxiety as the situation worsens. In every case of suicide/homicide in aviation I know of, the perpetrator has never betrayed anxiety - instead becoming task-focused and shutting out all extraneous human interaction.
Also his wife was on board - they were both returning from a holiday to Brazil which if anything seemed to lighten Bonin's mood based on second-hand evidence.
Everything else aside, all evidence indicates a pilot who tragically got out of his depth and was spooked enough to try the wrong thing over and over.