trader_4 wrote:

Another thing no one has mentioned. Malaysian military said they had
it on radar somewhere over the Straits at 29,500 ft. No one AFAIK
has commented on that. That's not a standard altitude.

I've monitored the flights I've been on using hand-held GPS, and I can
tell you that flight altitudes rarely match up with what the pilots
claim to be their cruise altitude or in-flight map display. Being off
by 500 feet is common.

Altimeters based on air pressure are not as accurate as consumer GPS.

ATC or military ground radar also is not that good at measuring
altitude.

But I'll tell you what is or has gotten little comment: The fact that
the plane was carrying a load of batteries (lithium ion? lithium
polymer?).

I'll tell you what happened: The cargo load was not secure, it shifted
during takeoff causing damage, batteries were punctured, fire ensued,
plane systems were damaged, smoke and fumes incapacitated passengers and
crew, plane flew some random course until it ran out of fuel.

Fire damage could have disrupted power to black boxes, so there is a
chance that they stopped recording much closer to the start of the
flight and would therefore contain extremely relavent and useful
information during the phase of the flight where humans were likely to
be alive, concious, or otherwise in control of the plane.