beamender99: The statement in the ATSB report about controlled ditching reads as follows:
Ditching considerations
A controlled ditching scenario requires engine thrust to be available to properly control the
direction and vertical speed at touchdown and to provide hydraulic power for the flight controls
including the flaps.
The final SATCOM transmission was considered by the satellite working group to be due to a
power interruption to the SDU. Given the performance analysis by Boeing, it is entirely reasonable
to assume that engine flame-outs triggered the APU auto-start that restored power to the SDU.
This evidence is therefore inconsistent with a controlled ditching scenario.
That is mostly rubbish. Engine thrust is not required to properly control the direction and vertical speed at touchdown and to provide hydraulic power for the flight controls. In the case of MH370 the Ram Air Turbine provided the electrical and hydraulic power required to operate the flight controls. It did not allow extension of the flaps. Without flaps the landing speed will be higher, but the airplane can land without flaps. To understand that engine thrust is not required for control of airspeed and vertical speed at touchdown, have a look at these time histories from the A320 ditching in the Hudson river:
