The stairs were in a free fall position. anyway you look at it...the test showed the same thing.,once you put weight on the stairs they go down, and when you leave the stairs, they go back up....
Yes, of course they were in a free fall position but at what point in the timeline? The sled test doesn't tell us that. The amber indicator light light is not necessarily an indication of a drop.. only a lever move and at about 20 degrees opening the end would be about 3ft x 3.5ft.
7:33 Flight 305 takes off
7:37 Tina goes to cabin
7:40:06 NW 305 Three oh five through sixty five hundred ah trying to get the stairs down back there ah
7:40:48 NW 305 One oh five ah three oh five we’re gonna level off here for a while at seven thousand he wants the steps down ah we’re gonna have er about down to a hundred and sixty knots
7:42 Cooper is trying to get the door down, Stew is with us, he cannot get the stairs down. We now have an aft stair light on.
7:44:22 NW 305 Okay we’ll hold at seven here we got the back steps down now and ah it looks like we aren’t gonna be able to climb anymore
7:45 Flt 305 reports 19 NM DME out of SEA at 7,000 ft. No comm.. with Cooper but have an aft stair light.
7:51:42 NW 305 Center Northwest three oh five ah we’re gonna climb out climbing up ah to ten thousand and ah we’re through nine now
7:53:34 NW 305 Northwest three oh five we’re ten thousand and 170- 180 knots
8:05 Pilot reports that he has tried twice to contact Cooper unsuccessfully, thenhe came on the PA system and said everything is OK.
8:12 Flt 305 advises they are getting some oscillations in the cabin, Cooper must be doing something with the stairs.