Originally Posted by PFR
what of the significance of the Landing Gear being extended
For those still interested in the causes of this accident
(and we're still months away from the data we're hoping for), yes, I think it would be very significant if the gear had been extended by crew action. It is of course quite possible that the gear was released from its uplocks by impact forces. However, I would think that the duration of high vertical acceleration is no more than a small fraction of a second, and therefore consider it unlikely that the gear would reach the fully down position before being ripped out together with its back-up structure in the wing.
Perhaps someone could produce a picture of that gear as installed on an intact airplane?
Regards,
HN39