Editing TWA Flight 800 (section)

===In-flight breakup sequence and crippled flight===
<gallery class="center" caption="Debris fields">
File:TWA Flight 800 zones.png|alt=Map showing the locations of the red, yellow, and green zones: fig. 22a, p.&nbsp;66|Map showing the locations of the red, yellow, and green zones<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|at=fig. 22a, p. 66}}
File:Twa 800 fig 22b.PNG|Wreckage found in each zone corresponded to specific areas of the aircraft<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|at=fig. 22b, p. 67}}|alt=Wreckage found in each zone corresponded to specific areas of the aircraft: fig. 22b, p.&nbsp;67
File:Twa 800 fig 22c.PNG|The pathways the wreckage took as it fell to the ocean<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|at=fig. 22c, p. 68}}|alt=The pathways the wreckage took as it fell to the ocean: fig. 22c, p.&nbsp;68
</gallery>
[[File:Slide0045 image013.PNG|thumbnail|right|Slide from NTSB presentation of TWA 800 breakup sequence, illustrating structure and size of CWT]]

Recovery locations of the wreckage from the ocean (the red, yellow, and green zones) clearly indicated: (1) the red area pieces (from the forward portion of the wing center section and a ring of fuselage directly in front) were the earliest pieces to separate from the airplane; (2) the forward fuselage section departed simultaneously with or shortly after the red area pieces, landing relatively intact in the yellow zone; (3) the green area pieces (wings and the aft portion of the fuselage) remained intact for a period after the separation of the forward fuselage and impacted the water in the green zone.<ref name="NTSB Seq p.29" />{{Rp|3–4}}

[[File:Twa 800 in-flight breakup.jpg|thumb|left|Frame from the CIA's animated depiction of how TWA Flight 800 broke apart: When the bottom of the aircraft blew out from the exploding fuel tank, cracks spread around the fuselage and severed the entire front section of the plane.]]

Fire damage and soot deposits on the recovered wreckage indicated that some areas of fire existed on the airplane as it continued in crippled flight after the loss of the forward fuselage.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|109}} After about 34 seconds (based on information from witness documents), the outer portions of both the right and left wings failed.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|109, 263}} Shortly after, the left wing separated from what remained of the main fuselage, which resulted in further development of the fuel-fed fireballs as the pieces of wreckage fell to the ocean.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|263}}

Only the FAA radar facility in [[North Truro]], [[Massachusetts]], using specialized processing software from the [[United States Air Force]] [[84th Radar Evaluation Squadron]], was capable of estimating the altitude of TWA 800 after it lost power due to the CWT explosion.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|87}} Because of accuracy limitations, these radar data could not be used to determine whether the aircraft climbed after the nose separated.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|87}} Instead, the NTSB conducted a series of computer simulations to examine the flightpath of the main portion of the fuselage.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|95–96}} Hundreds of simulations were run using various combinations of possible times the nose of TWA 800 separated (the exact time was unknown), different models of the behavior of the crippled aircraft (the aerodynamic properties of the aircraft without its nose could only be estimated), and longitudinal radar data (the recorded radar tracks of the east/west position of TWA 800 from various sites differed).<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|96–97}} These simulations indicated that after the loss of the forward fuselage the remainder of the aircraft continued in crippled flight, then pitched up while rolling to the left (north),<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|263}} climbing to a maximum altitude between {{convert|15537|and|16678|ft|m}}<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|97}} from its last recorded altitude, {{convert|13760|ft|m}}.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|256}}

====Analysis of reported witness observations====
[[File:Ntsb twa beach view.PNG|thumbnail|left|upright=0.8|Most witness observations of a streak of light were determined by the NTSB to be consistent with the calculated flightpath of TWA 800 after the CWT explosion (screenshot from an NTSB animation).]]

At the start of the FBI's investigation, because of the possibility that international terrorists might have been involved, assistance was requested from the [[Central Intelligence Agency]] (CIA).<ref name="Tauss CIA report">{{cite journal |author=Tauss |first=Randolph M. |title=Solving the Mystery of the 'Missile Sightings' |url=https://www.cia.gov/offices-of-cia/public-affairs/entertainment-industry-liaison/twaflight.pdf |journal=The Crash of TWA Flight 800 |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency |access-date=April 6, 2011 |archive-date=August 5, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110805132207/https://www.cia.gov/offices-of-cia/public-affairs/entertainment-industry-liaison/twaflight.pdf |url-status=dead}}</ref>{{rp|2}} CIA analysts, relying on sound-propagation analysis, concluded that the witnesses could not be describing a missile approaching an intact aircraft, but were seeing a trail of burning fuel coming from the aircraft after the initial explosion.<ref name="Tauss CIA report"/>{{rp|5–6}} This conclusion was reached after calculating how long the sound of the initial explosion took to reach the witnesses, and using that to correlate the witness observations with the accident sequence.<ref name="Tauss CIA report"/>{{rp|5}} In all cases, the witnesses could not be describing a missile approaching an intact aircraft, as the plane had already exploded before their observations began.<ref name="Tauss CIA report"/>{{rp|6}}

As the investigation progressed, the NTSB decided to form a witness group to more fully address the accounts of witnesses.<ref name="Witness Report"/>{{rp|7}} From November 1996 through April 1997, this group reviewed summaries of witness accounts on loan from the FBI (with personal information redacted) and conducted interviews with crewmembers from a [[New York Air National Guard]] [[HH-60]] helicopter and [[C-130]] airplane, as well as a U.S. Navy [[P-3 Orion|P-3]] airplane that was flying in the vicinity of TWA 800 at the time of the accident.<ref name="Witness Report"/>{{rp|7–8}}

In February 1998, the FBI, having closed its active investigation, agreed to fully release the witness summaries to the NTSB.<ref name="Witness Report"/>{{rp|10}} With access to these documents no longer controlled by the FBI, the NTSB formed a second witness group to review the documents.<ref name="Witness Report"/>{{rp|10}} Because of the time that had elapsed (about 21 months) before the NTSB received information about the identity of the witnesses, the witness group chose not to reinterview the witnesses, but instead to rely on the original summaries of witness statements written by FBI agents as the best available evidence of the observations initially reported by the witnesses.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|230}} Despite the two and a half years that had elapsed since the accident, the witness group did interview the captain of Eastwind Airlines Flight 507, who was the first to report the explosion of TWA 800, because of his vantage point and experience as an airline pilot.<ref name="Witness Report"/>{{rp|12}}<ref>{{Cite journal |date=1999-03-25 |title=Witnesses 4 – Group Chairman Factual Report – Appendix Z – Interview transcript Capt. David McClaine |url=https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40058381&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Witnesses%204%20-%20Group%20Chairman%20Factual%20Report%20-%20Appendix%20Z%20-%20Interview%20transcript%20Capt.%20David%20McClaine%20March%2025,%201999-Master.PDF |journal=Docket No. SA-516, Appendix Z |publisher=National Transportation Safety Board |access-date=2021-03-14 |archive-date=July 23, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210723174700/https://data.ntsb.gov/Docket/Document/docBLOB?ID=40058381&FileExtension=.PDF&FileName=Witnesses%204%20-%20Group%20Chairman%20Factual%20Report%20-%20Appendix%20Z%20-%20Interview%20transcript%20Capt.%20David%20McClaine%20March%2025,%201999-Master.PDF |url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:TWA NTSB.png|thumb|A frame from the NTSB's animation depicting how the noseless plane climbed erratically before descending into the ocean]]
The NTSB's review of the released witness documents determined that they contained 736 witness accounts, of which 258 were characterized as "streak of light" witnesses ("an object moving in the sky... variously described [as] a point of light, fireworks, a flare, a shooting star, or something similar.")<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|230}} The NTSB witness group concluded that the streak of light reported by witnesses might have been the actual airplane during some stage of its flight before the fireball developed, noting that most of the 258 streak-of-light accounts were generally consistent with the calculated flightpath of the accident airplane after the CWT explosion.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|262}}

Thirty-eight witnesses described a streak of light that ascended vertically, or nearly so, and these accounts "seem[ed] to be inconsistent with the accident airplane's flightpath."<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|265}} In addition, 18 witnesses reported seeing a streak of light that originated at the surface, or the horizon, which did not "appear to be consistent with the airplane's calculated flightpath and other known aspects of the accident sequence."<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|265}} Regarding these differing accounts, the NTSB noted that based on their experience in previous investigations "witness reports are often inconsistent with the known facts or with other witnesses' reports of the same events."<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|237}} The interviews conducted by the FBI focused on the possibility of a missile attack; suggested interview questions given to FBI agents such as "Where was the sun in relation to the aircraft and the missile launch point?" and "How long did the missile fly?" could have biased interviewees' responses in some cases.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|266}} The NTSB concluded that given the large number of witnesses in this case, they "did not expect all of the documented witness observations to be consistent with one another"<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|269}} and "did not view these apparently anomalous witness reports as persuasive evidence that some witnesses might have observed a missile."<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|270}}

After missile visibility tests were conducted in April 2000, at [[Eglin Air Force Base]], [[Fort Walton Beach, Florida]],<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|254}} the NTSB determined that if witnesses had observed a missile attack, they would have seen:
# a light from the burning missile motor ascending very rapidly and steeply for about 8 seconds
# the light disappearing for up to 7 seconds
# upon the missile striking the aircraft and igniting the CWT, another light, moving considerably more slowly and more laterally than the first, for about 30 seconds
# this light descending while simultaneously developing into a fireball falling toward the ocean.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|270}} None of the witness documents described such a scenario.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|270}}
[[File:Twa n93119 wing explosion.jpg|thumb|left|Another frame from the CIA's animation depicting how the left wing of TWA Flight 800 was shorn off and created a second fireball]]
Because of their unique vantage points or the level of precision and detail provided in their accounts, five witness accounts generated special interest:<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|242–243}} the pilot of Eastwind Airlines Flight 507, the crew members in the HH-60 helicopter, a streak-of-light witness aboard [[US Airways]] Flight 217, a land witness on the Beach Lane Bridge in [[Westhampton Beach, New York]] and a witness on a boat near Great Gun Beach.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|243–247}} Advocates of a missile-attack scenario asserted that some of these witnesses observed a missile;<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|264}} analysis demonstrated that the observations were not consistent with a missile attack on TWA&nbsp;800, but instead were consistent with these witnesses having observed part of the in-flight fire and breakup sequence after the CWT explosion.<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|264}}

The NTSB concluded, "the witness observations of a streak of light were not related to a missile and that the streak of light reported by most of these witnesses was burning fuel from the accident airplane in crippled flight during some portion of the postexplosion, preimpact breakup sequence".<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|270}} The NTSB further concluded, "the witnesses' observations of one or more fireballs were of the airplane's burning wreckage falling toward the ocean".<ref name="Final Report"/>{{rp|270}}