Middle Eastern Conflict [General]

[Svip]

Reportedly. That seems to be the keyword in that story. If it's true, it's huge. Which leads me to wonder why no one else is reporting it. I don't mind suggesting press time being a factor, but before I see this report elsewhere, I am going to leave it as reportedly.

[Dingdongs]

same. I can't find that story about the Turks shooting down the Russian jet anywhere except for less than reputable sites.

[GKS Sahara]

I don't think that story is true. However, I do believe some sh*t went down. There was an explosion in the sky, and a few jets flew by it. Something happened, we just don't know what. Could've been a bomb blowing up mid air, or even those apparent cluster bombs going off that Russia/Syrian Regime has been using apparently.

Edited October 11, 2015 by GKS Sahara

[G's Ah's]

Or perhaps some sort of flare/countermeasures which were used in an actual air-to-air engagement.

[Eutyphro]

I wouldn't be enormously surprised if the root causes turn out to be something entirely unrelated. There's a slight but significant statistical upward trend for birth defects in Basra which started, oddly, in the late 1990s (and well away from any battlefields). The biggest contributors to things like cancers and birth defects have historically been organophosphate pesticides, aromatic hydrocarbons like benzene, polychlorinated compounds like TCDD and PCBs which are found in myriads of different things from plastic tubing to dielectric oils and have been extensively used in the petroleum industry. There are marked clusters of increased elevation of serious illnesses, birth defects and cancers in Southern Italy where the various Mafia-like groups have dumped toxic waste; actually the similarities in reported illnesses are quite striking. The same is true of some of the big American environmental tragedies like Love Canal and Times Beach, and interestingly enough very similar trends have been reported in downtown New York since 9/11, particularly amongst workers involved in the cleanup.

 

Oke, late response, but after reading into it somewhat more I found a study that has a credible narrative that the peak in birth defects In fallujah and Basrah is likely to be related to metal contamination caused bombing an shelling. And not specifcally contamination by depleted uranium, but also by lead and mercury.

 

"Our data suggested that birth defects in the Iraqi cities of Al Basrah (in the south of Iraq) and Fallujah (in central Iraq) are mainly folate-dependent. [...]

 

The most common abnormalities in Fallujah children were congenital heart defects (n = 24 out of 46), neural tube defects (n = 18 out of 46), and cleft lip/palate (n = 4 out of 46). Cardiac defects, neural tube defects, and facial clefting are known as folate-dependent birth defects since folate intake reduces their occurrence (MRC Vitamin Study Research Group 1991; Wilson et al. 2003; Obican et al. 2010). The Fallujah study has highlighted the role of metals in the manifestation of the current birth defect epidemic in that city. Recent data has linked metal exposure to oxidative stress and folate deficiency in humans (Wang et al. 2012). We also know that in utero metal exposure can culminate in birth deformities by increasing oxidative stress in the womb as the fetus grows (Apostoli and Catalani 2011)."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3464374/

 

Sivispacem: This strikes me as odd, as Basra doesn't fall inside the areas of catalogued strikes using DU munitions when investigations were done into the possible causes of Gulf War Syndrome. In fact, it was almost entirely outside of where operations were conducted in that conflict.

On the image you provided, they were not far from Basra, and these materials can be transported by natural causes.. Furthermore, other sources (The Independent for example) claim depleted uranium was used near Basra in the first Gulf War.

 

Almost all farm produce consumed by residents of Basra is grown in lands in which thousands of depleted uranium shells were fired.

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/the-wests-poisonous-legacy-1156487.html

 

 

During the Gulf war, Britain and the United States pounded the city and its surroundings with 96,000 depleted-uranium shells

http://www.rense.com/general17/south.htm

 

But as a disclaimer, I'm not implying any definite conclusion on this. It's a much more specialized and complicated interdisciplinary topic than I had first suspected.

Edited October 11, 2015 by Eutyphro

[make total destroy]

Ankara bombing: Anger at victims' funerals as PM blames IS

 

 

 

 

"Hanged in Chicago, beheaded in Germany, garroted in Xerez, shot in Barcelona, guillotined in Montbrison and in Paris, our dead are many; but you have not been able to destroy anarchy. Its roots go deep: its spouts from the bosom of a rotten society that is falling apart; it is a violent backlash against the established order; it stands for the aspirations to equality and liberty which have entered the lists against the current authoritarianism. It is everywhere. That is what makes it indomitable, and it will end by defeating you and killing you." - Émile Henry

[sivispacem]

I'm absolutely positive I posted a response to this but apparently not.

 

 

Oke, late response, but after reading into it somewhat more I found a study that has a credible narrative that the peak in birth defects In fallujah and Basrah is likely to be related to metal contamination caused bombing an shelling. And not specifcally contamination by depleted uranium, but also by lead and mercury.

This is interesting, but I cannot fathom the apparent combat link to heavy metals like mercury, primarily because they're not actually used in weapons. They used to use mercury in fuses for air-dropped bombs and shells, but these days they're all solid state electronics. And I'm not sure on the prevalence of lead in modern munitions; I know in the West all our small arms ammunition these days is lead-free. It is of course possible that one of the effects of the destruction caused during bombings was to displace various pollutants, but if this were the case I would expect to see similar trends in other war zones. This is what confuses me about the whole topic- there's nothing exceptional about the weapons utilised in Iraq compared to other conflicts so I simply don't understand how any long-term health effects amongst Iraqi citizens could be caused by them given that no long-term health effects have presented themselves in other conflicts where the same weapons have been used.

 

There have been numerous instances of mass heavy metal poisoning in the last 100 or so years and as far as I'm aware not a single one even correlates with, much less has a causal link with, a conflict. They're almost universally the results of harmful corporate practices in the chemical or mining industry.

 

 

On the image you provided, they were not far from Basra

Uranium is one of the densest stable elements, which means that even in powder or dust form it's far less susceptible to carriage by wind or other typical natural/environmental factors. Even if this weren't the case, the claimed scale of illnesses simply does not tally with what would be fairly small quantities of the material. It's simply speculation.

 

 

Almost all farm produce consumed by residents of Basra is grown in lands in which thousands of depleted uranium shells were fired

If we were discussing a heavy metal like cadmium or mercury compounds this would be a perfectly valid argument, but uranium is exceptionally insoluble, and therefore poses a very low bioaccumulation risk for crops. Bioaccumulation has been observed in the kidneys of humans (and therefore possibly other animals) who have either ingested or inhaled uranium dust, but it's lack of solubility precludes it from being able to affect crops in the same way that things like methylmercury or other persistent organic pollutants can. So, whilst they may well be correct in saying that crops were and are grown in these areas, that doesn't necessarily equate to any additional risk. Large swathes of Canada, South Africa and Australia which are used for both crop farming and livestock grazing have abnormally high proportions of natural uranium ores in the soil, but there's no correlation with increase illnesses in these areas.

 

 

rense.com

You might want to check your source there. Lifted from Wikipedia:

 

Jeff Rense is an American radio talk-show host and conspiracy theorist. His show, Jeff Rense Program, was formerly broadcast via satellite radio and remains available online.

Rense's radio program and website promote fringe views such as 9/11 conspiracy theories, UFO reporting, paranormal phenomena, creation of diseases, chemtrails, animal rights, evidence of advanced ancient technology, emergent energy technologies, and alternative medicine.

Rense's writings and website have been deemed anti-semitic by the Anti-Defamation League and the Southern Poverty Law Center.

 

 

But as a disclaimer, I'm not implying any definite conclusion on this. It's a much more specialized and complicated interdisciplinary topic than I had first suspected.

It's an exceptionally complex and interesting topic. The simple fact is that we just don't know what's causing these elevated levels of illness. We don't even have it on anything resembling good, independent authority that these elevated levels of illness actually exist, thanks to our good friend Dr Busby's proximity to almost every single report to that effect and his clear interest in manipulating reality on the subject.

[Dingdongs]

TUrks supposedly shot down a uav of some kind today... speculation is that it is Russian. this time the Turks shooting down an aerial object is actually from a reputable website.

 

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-34551155

Edited October 16, 2015 by Irviding

[GTA36362355]

So Putin woke up yesterday and decided to go talk about War and Peace.

 

 

Right earpiece for translation from 1:54:46

[acmilano]

There is possibility of Coup in Saudi Arabia:

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-oualaalou/a-possible-coup-in-saudi_b_8325456.html

 

 

If Saudi Arabia didn't already have enough worries in a fast-changing Middle East, yet another crisis hit home for the desert kingdom: alleged hospitalization of King Salman, thought to have Alzheimer's disease or some form of dementia. He only assumed the throne in January.

While the 79-year-old monarch's hospital stay surprised many in the West, the question global affairs and security analysts ask is: What might the future look like for Saudi Arabia now that the controversial king is sidelined? Will the rest of the royal family accept and allow Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef to lead? Or will the kingdom's royal family see division within the ranks?
These events could coalesce into a major political storm, significantly increasing the risk of instability not only within the kingdom but across the greater, strife-torn Middle East (if that's even possible).

This turn of events comes on the heels of shocking news. London's Guardian credits claims by an anonymous Saudi prince who states that two letters have circulated among senior members of the royal family encouraging them to stage a coup against King Salman. The rationale is the king and his powerful 30-year-old son, Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, have pursued dangerous policies that are leading the kingdom to political, economic and military ruin. Disclosure of these memos raises serious concerns. I find myself recalling the assassination of King Faisal in 1975.

Should royal infighting reveal itself to the outside world, it'll mark the start of the end for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as we know it. Far-reaching consequences will resound not only economically and politically but religiously and geopolitically. How?

War in Yemen: The kingdom finds itself entangled in a conflict with a next-door neighbor with no end in sight. King Salman and his son miscalculated. The longer Saudi forces continue to engage the Houthis, the more likely internal dissension within the kingdom itself grows. Images broadcast on al-Jazeera show Saudi Arabia, an outrageously rich country, pummeling Yemen, one of the poorest in the Arab world. All this generates criticism of the Saudis and sympathy for Houthi rebels.

Edited October 23, 2015 by acmilano

[Spaghetti Cat]

Yeah let me shed a tear for those inbreds in the monarchy...ok done.

 

 

In other news, did you know we had a service member die in Iraq yesterday? Yes, first in several years.

 

 

 

Delta Force Master Sergent Joshua Wheeler

 

Thank you for your service and the ultimate act of bravery.

 

Here is a description, quite harrowing:

 

http://abc11.com/news/us-service-member-killed-during-raid-of-isis-prison/1045729/

[Dingdongs]

 

There is possibility of Coup in Saudi Arabia:

 

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-oualaalou/a-possible-coup-in-saudi_b_8325456.html

 

 

If Saudi Arabia didn't already have enough worries in a fast-changing Middle East, yet another crisis hit home for the desert kingdom: alleged hospitalization of King Salman, thought to have Alzheimer's disease or some form of dementia. He only assumed the throne in January.

While the 79-year-old monarch's hospital stay surprised many in the West, the question global affairs and security analysts ask is: What might the future look like for Saudi Arabia now that the controversial king is sidelined? Will the rest of the royal family accept and allow Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef to lead? Or will the kingdom's royal family see division within the ranks?

These events could coalesce into a major political storm, significantly increasing the risk of instability not only within the kingdom but across the greater, strife-torn Middle East (if that's even possible).

This turn of events comes on the heels of shocking news. London's Guardian credits claims by an anonymous Saudi prince who states that two letters have circulated among senior members of the royal family encouraging them to stage a coup against King Salman. The rationale is the king and his powerful 30-year-old son, Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, have pursued dangerous policies that are leading the kingdom to political, economic and military ruin. Disclosure of these memos raises serious concerns. I find myself recalling the assassination of King Faisal in 1975.

Should royal infighting reveal itself to the outside world, it'll mark the start of the end for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia as we know it. Far-reaching consequences will resound not only economically and politically but religiously and geopolitically. How?

War in Yemen: The kingdom finds itself entangled in a conflict with a next-door neighbor with no end in sight. King Salman and his son miscalculated. The longer Saudi forces continue to engage the Houthis, the more likely internal dissension within the kingdom itself grows. Images broadcast on al-Jazeera show Saudi Arabia, an outrageously rich country, pummeling Yemen, one of the poorest in the Arab world. All this generates criticism of the Saudis and sympathy for Houthi rebels.

RIP to the MSgt

 

 

As for the Saudis, they aren't going anywhere for a very long time. Just because Salman may get sidelined due to illness doesn't mean the state is going to fall. I hate these armchair experts who predict literally the most extreme possible thing happening whenever the slightest thing changes in a regime... Saudis are one of the most stable authoritarian regimes in the world if not the most. Yes there are family politics and infighting but in the grand scheme of things domestically, they're on the same side... And "they" run every single little nook and cranny of that state from education to military to police to religion from the national government down to the f*cking neighborhood watch. They ain't going anywhere.

[Svip]

Oh noes! Will we already have a new King of Saudi-Arabia? And I was just getting to know the guy's name.

Edited October 26, 2015 by Svip

[GTA36362355]

 

http://www.reuters.com/article/2015/10/31/us-egypt-crash-idUSKCN0SP06V20151031

 

Must be ISIS?

Aviation experts trolling youtube comments.

What goddamn weapon can shoot down airplanes at 30K ft?

 

http://time.com/4095507/russia-plane-crash-isis-egypt/

Edited October 31, 2015 by Mister Kay

[sivispacem]

A Buk.

[GTA36362355]

How did ISIS get those missiles?


Russia dismisses ISIS claim of downing jet.
http://time.com/4095507/russia-plane-crash-isis-egypt/

Militants in northern Sinai have not to date shot down any commercial airliners or fighter jets but there have been media reports that they have acquired Russian shoulder-fired, anti-aircraft missiles. These missiles, however, are only effective against low-flying aircraft or helicopters.

The only missile they seem to have in possession is a SCUD but that was back in 2014.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/syria/10936926/Does-the-Islamic-State-have-a-Scud-missile.html
http://www.militaryfactory.com/smallarms/weapons-of-isis.asp

 

 

Talking about missiles,

 

Edited October 31, 2015 by Mister Kay

[sivispacem]

You just asked what weapon could do it . But yeah, it doesn't look like it's the work of Sinai militants given the aircraft was apparently experiencing technical issues.

[GTA36362355]

 

 

 

 

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

 

The scene appears tragic with victims strapped to their seats.

 

 

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/africa/egypt-plane-crash-recovery-workers-describe-tragic-scene-with-victims-still-strapped-to-their-seats-a6716151.html

 

The plane split into two, a small part on the tail end that burned and a larger part that crashed into a rock. We have extracted at least 100 bodies and the rest are still inside.

 

...the aircraft was descending rapidly at about 6,000 feet per minute before it disappeared from radar.

 

It went down from 400 knots to 62 knots and then it suddenly started to drop very fastafter about 20 seconds we lost the signal from this aircraft.

Almost vertically.

Edited October 31, 2015 by Mister Kay

[Dingdongs]

You just asked what weapon could do it . But yeah, it doesn't look like it's the work of Sinai militants given the aircraft was apparently experiencing technical issues.

If this was an act of terror on the Russians, this is the start of a long descent for Putin feeling the pain of the West in being attacked by Islamic terror. He's already pissing off the Muslim populations in his Central Asian territories with the intervention in Syria....

 

That being said it does seem unlikely ISIS could take down a civilian airliner from the Sinai.... if it was shot down over their territory than absolutely more plausible.

[GTA36362355]

Most definitely has been shot down. What's the value of innocent civilians these days? Apart from their insurance...

 

 

 

Sinai plane crash: Russian airliner 'broke up in mid-air'

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-34694057

 

 

A senior Russian aviation official has confirmed that the plane broke up in mid-air. But Viktor Sorochenko said it was too early to draw conclusions about the causes of the disaster from that fact.

Egyptian officials said some bodies had been recovered within a radius of 5km on Saturday, but that of a three-year-old girl was found 8km from the scene.

Egypt's civil aviation minister Hossam Kamal said there had been no sign of any problems on board the flight, contradicting earlier reports that the pilot had asked to make an emergency landing.

Must be the russian rebels who shot down MH17 then? Why not kill some of their own, right?

 

 

This is getting out of hands.

Edited November 1, 2015 by Mister Kay

[Spaghetti Cat]

 

You just asked what weapon could do it . But yeah, it doesn't look like it's the work of Sinai militants given the aircraft was apparently experiencing technical issues.

If this was an act of terror on the Russians, this is the start of a long descent for Putin feeling the pain of the West in being attacked by Islamic terror. He's already pissing off the Muslim populations in his Central Asian territories with the intervention in Syria....

 

That being said it does seem unlikely ISIS could take down a civilian airliner from the Sinai.... if it was shot down over their territory than absolutely more plausible.

 

 

There are groups operating in the Sinai that pledge allegiance to IS. There was a ship stuck by a missile there just a few months ago.

 

 

http://www.voanews.com/content/islamic-state-claims-missile-strike-on-egyptian-navy-vessel/2865068.html

 

Having said that I'm not aware of any MANPADS operating in the area. Even so Stingers are good to 10-15k feet, which airliners fly higher typical around 30k. Could be a bomb, but Russian airliners aren't well known for their safety record. Could just be an accident as well.

[sivispacem]

Most definitely has been shot down. What's the value of innocent civilians these days? Apart from their insurance...

 

 

 

Sinai plane crash: Russian airliner 'broke up in mid-air'

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-34694057

 

 

A senior Russian aviation official has confirmed that the plane broke up in mid-air. But Viktor Sorochenko said it was too early to draw conclusions about the causes of the disaster from that fact.

Egyptian officials said some bodies had been recovered within a radius of 5km on Saturday, but that of a three-year-old girl was found 8km from the scene.

Egypt's civil aviation minister Hossam Kamal said there had been no sign of any problems on board the flight, contradicting earlier reports that the pilot had asked to make an emergency landing.

Must be the russian rebels who shot down MH17 then? Why not kill some of their own, right?

 

 

This is getting out of hands.

The overwhelming majority of in-flight break-ups have nothing to do with shoot-down incidents. It's as far from "definite" as you can get.

[GTA36362355]

Maybe so but determining what happened will require a lengthy investigation by aviation specialists considering that the crash site is spread over about 20 square kilometers. One certainly cannot rule out a missile strike scenario when Egyptian authorities are asking airlines to avoid certain areas of airspace over the Sinai peninsula even if it is just a precautionary measure.

 

 

The Russian airline Kogalymavia has blamed "external influence" for Saturday's Sinai plane crash.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-34697416

 

The only reasonable explanation is that it was [due to] external influence.

 

There is no such combination of failures of systems which could have led to the plane disintegrating in the air.

 

The Airbus 321 lost speed and started descending rapidly, and the crew made no attempt to get in contact and report about the situation on board.

 

The only [explanation] for the plane to have been destroyed in mid-air can be specific impact, purely mechanical, physical influence on the aircraft.

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/01/metrojet-ordered-suspend-all-flights-egypt-air-crash-russia-sinai

 

An Egyptian ground service official who examined the plane before takeoff said it appeared to be in good condition. Everything checked out in 35 minutes, he told the Associated Press.

 

We have received photos from space in which the wreckage of the plane is clearly seen over an area of 16 sq. km, said Aleksey Smirnov, an official from the Russian ministry.

An authoritative flight tracking service based in Sweden says it descended rapidly at about 1,800 metres a minute.

 

 

It is possible that, if the plane had had technical problems and descended, then IS could have shot it down, as they have medium-range weapons. But that's a bit contrived as a theory.

 

 

French experts believe Isil may have placed a bomb but never trust the french, eh?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/russia/11968554/Russian-plane-crash-everything-we-know-on-Sunday-afternoon-about-the-airliner-Isil-says-it-brought-down-on-Egypts-Sinai-Peninsula.html

 

A video is circulating online, which is being reported as showing the plane exploding mid air.

But The Telegraph's team have spoken to experts who are doubtful about its authenticity. And it is not being circulated on the usual Islamic State propaganda sites, casting further doubt on suggestions it was filmed by Isil.

Mathieu Guidere, a terrorism expert at the University of Toulouse in France, said the claim "is credible." "The Twitter account and the other sites that have published the claim have never published anything false. The statement also carries the same style as other statements from the group," he said.

Professor Michael Clarke, director general of the Royal United Services Institute think-tank, said: "Early reports said that [the aircraft] split into two and that suggests a catastrophic failure, not a mechanical failure, but that suggests perhaps an explosion on board.

"...it's much more likely to have been a bomb on board rather than a missile fired from the ground."

 

Aviation sources claim the tail section of the aircraft shows evidence of 'the fuselage skin peeling outwards possibly indicative of a force acting outwards from within' - possibly a bomb - which could be linked to the earliest moments of the aircraft's disaster sequence.

 

A US infrared satellite reportedly detected a heat flash in the same vicinity, indicating that an explosion may have happened on board.

 

The nature of passengers’ injuries indicate that an explosion took place aboard before the plane hit the ground, an Egyptian doctor who examined the bodies said, Sputnik news agency reported.

"A large number of body parts may indicate that a powerful explosion took place aboard the plane before it hit the ground," an Egyptian forensic expert told the agency.

 

Contradicting this, a Russian source within the investigation told TASS news agency that Russian and Egyptian experts failed to find any blast-related trauma during their preliminary examination of the bodies of the victims. One of the Egyptian experts also told TASS that “there were no signs of external impact” found on the bodies.

 

The passengers who were sitting near the back of the plane died of so-called “explosive trauma,” sustaining 90 percent skin burns and having metal pieces in their bodies, Russian tabloid LifeNews reports, citing the results of a forensic examination. Those closer to the front of the plane died of different types of injuries, including blood loss, open cranio-cerebral traumas and multiple fractures. So far, there has been no official response to these reports.

 

Dr. Anil Padhra, a senior lecturer in aviation studies at London’s Kingston University, says there is a “possibility that the aircraft could have collided with some other object – I’m thinking, in particular, unmanned aerial vehicles or drones may have been operated in that area to gather intelligence by different authorities… We know it was a conflict area. We know that drones can achieve that kind of altitude,” he said.

 

A source in Cairo told Interfax that just before the moment when the plane disappeared from radar screens, the recordings show sounds "uncharacteristic of a standard flight." According to the recording, "there was a sudden emergency situation on board which was a surprise to the plane’s crew, and the pilots did not have time to send a distress signal," the source added.

 

Experts have found components at the site of the crashed plane that are not related to pieces of the A321 jet, sources in Cairo told TASS, adding that they have been sent to be scrutinized by experts.

If it was a missile, only a state can have the capability to shoot at that altitude.

ISIS cannot and does not have the radars required to hit that plane.

 

Let's wait for the

even if it is red...or orange.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

These violations have become so routine there is a risk people will think that the deliberate bombing of civilians, the targeting of humanitarian and healthcare workers, and attacks on schools, hospitals and places of worship are an inevitable result of conflict.

 

International humanitarian law is being flouted on a global scale. The international community is failing to hold perpetrators to account.

 

...The bombing of the Médecins Sans Frontières hospital earlier this month in Kunduz, Afghanistan, was yet another tragedy a so-called surgical strike that instead destroyed a surgical ward.

 

(On the russian plane crash) I have seen the reports and I have also seen the report claiming responsibility of ISIL. Whoever has done it, it is totally unacceptable crime and I am condemning in the strongest possible terms, such a brutal crime committed against airlines and so many passengers. That is totally unacceptable and must be thoroughly investigated.

Edited November 4, 2015 by Mister Kay

[Dingdongs]

http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/04/africa/russian-plane-crash-egypt-sinai/index.html

 

(CNN)[breaking news alert, posted at 3:15 p.m. ET Wednesday]

The latest U.S. intelligence suggests that the crash of Metrojet Flight 9268 was most likely caused by a bomb on the plane planted by ISIS or an ISIS affiliate, according to a U.S. official familiar with the matter. The official stressed that there has not been a formal conclusion reached by the U.S. intelligence community. "There is a definite feeling it was an explosive device planted in luggage or somewhere on the plane," the official told CNN's Barbara Starr.

[GKS Sahara]

I'm thinking either of these.

 

A.) "Another possibility is an ignition of fuel vapors in an empty fuel cell such as the TWA 800 mishap in 1996. An improperly maintained fuel pump may have short circuited in an empty fuel cell, sparking the remaining vapors and creating a devastating explosion."

 

B.) A lone wolf Terrorist, brought a bomb on a plane, inspired by, however not directly affiliated by a Terror Organization.

 

C.) Someone hacked into the plane control system (as its been proven that that is possible). However that somewhat contradicts to the fact that the plane broke apart mid air. 

 

 

If it were a bomb, ISIS would've claimed as such, and not claim that it was a missile and release a propaganda video trying to prove that. Hence, I firmly believe it was either statement A, or Statement B.

[Dingdongs]

An affiliate of ISIS in the Sinai did claim responsiblity I believe, though.

[sivispacem]

The "hacking into plane control systems" claims were bunk. Just some sensationalist making utterly unfathomable claims without evidence to support them.

[Svip]

Particularly the 'hacking into control systems' from the ground have been proven to be exaggerated wildly. The only thing the 'hackers' were able to do was send messages to the plane, in such a way the pilot would see them, not actually control it.

[GTA36362355]

What about the other russian plane? The one that went down in Sudan. They couldn't maintain the plane?

 

was is no state to fly

Edited November 5, 2015 by Mister Kay

[Spaghetti Cat]

I'm thinking either of these.

 

A.) "Another possibility is an ignition of fuel vapors in an empty fuel cell such as the TWA 800 mishap in 1996. An improperly maintained fuel pump may have short circuited in an empty fuel cell, sparking the remaining vapors and creating a devastating explosion."

 

B.) A lone wolf Terrorist, brought a bomb on a plane, inspired by, however not directly affiliated by a Terror Organization.

 

C.) Someone hacked into the plane control system (as its been proven that that is possible). However that somewhat contradicts to the fact that the plane broke apart mid air. 

 

 

If it were a bomb, ISIS would've claimed as such, and not claim that it was a missile and release a propaganda video trying to prove that. Hence, I firmly believe it was either statement A, or Statement B.

 

A) Not up-to-date on the airbus safety schedule, but Boeing did retrofit most, if not all the fuel tanks at issue. Also there are regulations in the US that mitigate that type of vapor buildup. It may be plausible, due to the hot weather conditions in Egypt, but remote. It anything the tail strike this plane had a few years back might be more likely. The pressure vessel at the tail is relatively strong, however after many cycles it could develop fractures that can only be found by rigorous inspections. Just judging the history of Russian aviation this may be an avenue to look into.

 

B) The IS affiliated group isn't previously know for attacking airliners. The group mostly know for this is the AQ-linked group out of Yemen. While possible that it was a lone-wolf type situation, it's unlikely due to the expertise needed to develop, arm, and hide a bomb on an airliner. It's possible that someone related to the ground crew placed a device on the plane, don't really know that much about egyptian airport security.

 

C) From my understanding the 'hacking' was related to changes in the waypoints or headings in the flight management system. This is something easily fixed by the flight crew. Even if there was some type of command takeover of the aircraft, it's highly unlikely that it would cause it to break apart mid-air. Personally I would discount this possibility.

 

There is an outside chance that there may have been a military drone in the area. Since these drones may not have a transponder onboard it's possible there may have been a mid-air collision. Though it's doubtful since only the airliner wreckage has been found.

 

Let's wait to see what the physical evidence has to say.