RichardC10
thanks for the links. The maps make things clearer.
As you suggested yesterday a ground speed of 325 to 350 kts leads to the search area.
If the plane was in straight flight it needs a flight level well below 350 to stay above minimum clean.
E.g. I am just watching a plane IAS270 and GS320 at FL120, almost no wc.
Or another one IAS250 and GS360 at FL220, no wc.
There are altitudes of 30000, 15000 and 3000 indicated at the last spot.
Flying significantly lower and/or slower will affect the endurance, too. At least 320 kts at 3000 feet does not make too much sense to me.
If the MH370 was lower than F350 at 18:22 it is highly unlikely that Penang radar could pick it up at 220 NM range, so descent should have happened later.
But GS may have been calculated from Penang defense radar returns.
Lots of question marks
I am sure this is worked into the model. It seems the final ping at 00:19 is where a gliding start is assumed.
Another option is that it was zig-zagging, which I would believe needs manual control (or a perfectly designed pre-loaded flight plan). But if GS was low under Penang radar already, zig-zag is not an option.
Turning point is assumed 18:27 to the South, I guess this is from some sort of Inmarsat login or so.
How can we get to 10 degrees left drift per hour?
Looking for your next analysis, Richard