Just a quick theory on the engine separation for AA587.
Scenario.
- Vertical Stabiliser fell off for reason or reasons to be determined.
- A/c became unstable vibrations felt in cockpit. (I think from an earlier thread the pilot thought wake turbulence and applied more power to compensate for what he perceived as WT.
-A/c starts yawing uncontrollably, newtons 2 law of motion about rotating objects tend to move 90 degrees out of phase with original changing force. Would be adding extra load on to engine pylons as the yawing motion turns into a pitching motion.
- A/c has kept its horizontal stabilisers so the pitching motion is constrained in the pylons and engine fittings.
- The pitching motion of the engines via newtons 2 law is turned into an additional yawing motion opposite the original motion. This could add to the original or additional yawing motion or act against any additional yawing motion. Either way the increased forces of the pylons would be pulling, twisting in all directions. The additional thrust would have added to this situation. This process would continue until the pylons could not take any more stress.
- One pylon would have to break first detaching the engine and ripping attachments and bits etc.
- With one gone the additional drag on the a/c and perhaps some loss of stability would increase the stress on the other pylon; it would then detach in a similar manner to the first. Quite probably as fuel line were separated from the engine fire may have erupted as full fuel was being pumped to the engines and the fuel lines may have ruptured prior to the final separation of the engine from the a/c
- The rest is, unfortunately, history.