What if . . . . .
What if the aircraft would have made it to the runway with this failure and had landed safely without any structural damage? Obviously the aircraft would have been taken out of service for some serious trouble shooting and would have undergone every operational and functional test available.
What value should be placed on the fact that in the current situation (with the aircraft relatively intact, minus engines and landing gear) it is impossible to do engine runs or landing gear related tests, hence impossible to check their functioning in conjunction (or interfacing) with other aircraft systems? Could something, due to their absence, be missing in the scheme of things? Bench testing components may not always reveal the problem which might have surfaced if the component was installed on the aircraft and tested.
If no definite cause is found, would it be worth to (if only temporarily) repair and complete the aircraft to a fully functioning vehicle to do such tests to possibly try and find the exact cause that way?
Regards,
Green-dot