Indeed, Galileo approached at this problem with the very same thought experiment...

ithkuil on July 6, 2018 | parent | context | favorite | on: Equivalence principle of general relativity holds ...

Indeed, Galileo approached at this problem with the very same thought experiment you're describing (even cited as an example of what a thought experiment is, right in the Overview section).

phyzome on July 7, 2018 [–]

Ah, that's good to hear!