Report: Missing Airplane Flew On For Hours

[jtuck004]

60. I wasn't clear. What I meant was that if a pilot sets it to fly somewhere, in the

absence of pressure on ailerons, flaps, etc, or thrust, something, it's just gonna keep doing what it's doing.

I didn't mean to shortchange the effect of gravity, but I am assuming the throttle (along with other controls) is set to overcome that, at least for the moment, so gravity, while in the picture, would wear on the flight path over time, but not enough to curve it to the ground before fuel runs out, I think.

There is also the effect of wind, up and downdrafts, though I don't know if that's much of a thing at that altitude?

I am just thinking that if they are flying along and everyone dies that plane is just gonna keep doin' what it was told to do if there are no other controls affecting it. So if it is set to fly to a point out there somewhere, barring some other force, it goes there till it can't.

I will work on my writing...