Question: If my uncle's iPhone can locate planes flying at this very moment, how is it that military equipment that costs billions of dollars cannot find the missing Malaysia Airlines flight?
- Submitted by reader Gilead Wright, Fabens, Texas
Answer: Your uncle's iPhone uses flight-tracking software utilizing radar and transponders. In the case of MH370, the airplane flew beyond radar coverage, thereby eliminating radar as a tracking device. The military equipment was used to the maximum extent possible by the investigators but did not provide evidence of the location.
Q: Do you think this could be like the Air France 447 case?
-- Cassidy Ryan, flight attendant, Montana
A: No, the situation was much different. There was no weather, there was no upload of malfunctions, and there was no loss of airspeed indication. The only similarity was that both were widebody jets with outstanding safety records flying over the ocean at night. Beyond that the similarities stop.
Q: Could the plane have flown farther by turning off one engine?
-- Chuck—Dayton, Ohio
A: Jets do not gain range by shutting down an engine. The drag of the lower altitude and lower speed more than offsets the decrease in the rate of fuel burn.
Q: Captain Cox, love your columns. A follow-up on a question you answered regarding whether a 777 could make a water landing. Please explain why the aircraft piloted by Capt. Sully landed on the water in New York and this one could not.
A: The river in New York was very calm the day that Captain Sullenberger landed. I do not think in an open ocean with significant swells, a large jet could land with minimal damage. I am aware of a DC-9 that landed in the open ocean several years ago, but it incurred substantial damage and sank quickly.
Q: I live near one of the searched oceans, what should I look for on the beach?
-- Robert, Kuantan, Malaysia
A: I would keep an eye out for seat cushions or other unusual items. If you see any such items, please report it to the local police.
Q: Should the search go on?
A: Yes, aviation does not accept unanswered mysteries well.
John Cox is a retired airline captain with U.S. Airways and runs his own aviation safety consulting company, Safety Operating Systems.