As usual on this forum, things can get off-track easily. I just logged on and tried to get caught up on the thread. But I found myself reading posts about the Air France accident, in-depth discussions about electronic tracking capabilities, systems that should or should not be turned off by the crew, and radar return levels that are OK to fly through.
So far, as always at this point, we know very little about this accident. As others have said, PRESUMING that this is weather related, I would be interested to know about the Captain's airline PIC and weather flying experience, especially since the he reportedly requested a climb.
Rarely is it a good idea (in a transport aircraft, anyway) to try to out-climb and overfly a thunderstorm. I would be interested in knowing how heavy he was at the point he requested a climb, and what was his maximum altitude for moderate turbulence based upon that weight.
Nor is it a good idea to try and penetrate a thunderstorm at night on radar.
Also, was there traffic ahead going the same way, and what were they doing to avoid the thunderstorm(s) ahead of him?
If he needed a heading change to safely skirt the cell, why didn't he simply declare an emergency and turn a safe distance off course when the clearance wasn't forthcoming?
Sorry if these things have been previously covered, but I got lost in discussions of wide body vs. narrow body differences in engine parameter transmission capabilities
