Quote:
Originally Posted by biznatch
If people could intercept a plane's GPS coordinates in real time, that would be very scary.
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How is that any more dangerous than them being able to look up?
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tully Mars
I think the problem with what you're talking about at the moment is there are huge black out spots for sat. coverage in the mid to South Atlantic, Indian Ocean and to a lesser extent the South Pacific. No sat coverage, no GPS.
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The GPS constellation covers the whole globe at all times.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Snowgirl
So, what I find strange is, we are a culture enamored with the cell phones. And not a one person on board had a chance to turn on the phone and call a relative or a friend like in the 9/11 hijacking of that plane.
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Except for one (maybe two?) those were all made from the built-in phones you find in the back of the headrest in front of you. This plane probably didn't have them and there's no way you're getting cell reception 700 miles from the coast
Quote:
Originally Posted by ShaniFaye
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I can't find anything on how frequently bomb threats are received, but a few weeks after one doesn't seem to me like it's likely to be connected.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tully Mars
I know jack shit about flying anything other then single engine prop planes. But I'd hazard a guess there no way that Airbus could get anywhere near Mach 1. Well, maybe vertically headed down.
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Commercial aircraft diving can break the sound barrier according to one of my dad's first hand account of a USAF 727 doing surveillance in the 70s off the coast of the Soviet Union. Unusual weather conditions allowed signals from a Soviet training flight a few thousand miles away to be picked up by the training pilots, and all they heard was "Fire your missiles" in Russian. They dove, topped 800mph, and leveled out close enough to the water that missile radar couldn't distinguish them from surf (80-100 feet, I think.)