Regarding the Apache circling the crash site...
I'm not a pilot and have no specific expertise whatsoever in regards to aviation. Really appreciate the insights on this forum, if a bit scattered..
I am however a close Egypt watcher and years-long resident. Just to lend a bit of context here:
Egypt is.... militarized. They fly Apaches and F-16s around central Cairo every now and then just for the heck of it. As noted, central Sinai is a lawless area with some level of threat, but really, Egypt generally and the current government in particular is enamored with military hardware and there's no more reason for them to fly attack aircraft around the area other than that they can.
Also, people need to take everything and anything the government of Egypt says with a high degree of skepticism. That's already been proven with this distress call that wasn't, and general radar confusion yesterday with the plane reported in Cyprus and Turkey. Honestly I can't think of anything less transparent than a joint Russian-Egyptian investigation. Hopefully Airbus and other third party involvement will help keep this process in check.
Finally, on the purely speculative point of Sharm security... having lived in many continents and countries around the world, my personal feeling is that it is totally plausible that local sympathizers could easily place something on board. Egyptian security is just short of a joke, especially at the smaller airports outside of Cairo.
Thanks again for the interesting conversation here. Appreciate the professional perspectives.
Last edited by Modesto; 1st Nov 2015 at 17:14.