Object hits A320 near Panama border

If he was in cruise and on a J route, someone above could have had a lav seal leak. Look up Blue Ice as it pertains to aviation. However normally the blue ice does not break free until a really big buildup occurs or a decent to a warmer altitude is made.

Blue ice in the context of aviation is frozen sewage material leaked mid-flight from commercial aircraft lavatory waste systems, a biowaste mixture of human waste and liquid disinfectant that freezes at high altitude. The name comes from the blue color of the disinfectant. Airlines are not allowed to dump their waste tanks in mid-flight, and pilots have no mechanism by which to do so; however, leaks can occur.

en.wikipedia.org...:Blue_ice_(precipitation)

a reply to: Zaphod58

a glancing blow from falling space debris would not neccecerally puncture the skin

My money is on ice from another aircraft.

a reply to: ignorant_ape

It would have to barely kiss it depending on where it hit.

Would ice leave any residue on the fuselage though? Blue ice might I suppose.

ETA: a skid mark at 35,000 feet!

originally posted by: ReadLeader
a reply to: Zaphod58

WTF is at 35k feet? AND preytell, what would they have hit at that speed that would not severely damage the lightweight fuselage?

Agreed. That is baffling

originally posted by: ignorant_ape
a reply to: Zaphod58

a glancing blow from falling space debris would not neccecerally puncture the skin

I think the odds of that are so monumentaly small that itcan be ignored. Just my 2 cents.

Could have been something someone sent up in a balloon? People are always sending balloons into the upper atmosphere (and irritatingly calling it SPACE). You would hope that no one would do it over air routes..but you never know.

a reply to: Zaphod58

Hold the phone Mulder.

Before I read the story I immediately thought micro meteor or micro comet. But the presence of an unknown substance at that altitude? the chances of anything of unknown origin hitting a plane at that height and with the plane moving at that velocity would make the lottery seem like a coin toss.

I'd like to know the weather observations at the time of the collision as that could be telling, and I imagine the Forteans would be loving this.

a reply to: Poon

a skid mark at 35,000 feet!

I don't fly. Sorry.

could it be jettisoned potty from that other flight up at FL 41....? so

was it a blue mark they found? he...he no, it wouldn't still be blue

a reply to: GBP/JPY
I was wondering if that was the case. Imagine, flying along and you hit a poop-cicle.

a reply to: Zaphod58

i would say NOT weather related, as you said the leading edges would get pretty messed up. usually you dont get one snowball at 30k+ feet.

might be pollution related, i remember reading stores about gels falling out of the ski over some town.