I realise that this is a rumours network and that there are plenty of non experts including it must be said bavarian radio. I find the eagerness of certain posters already to suggest failure on the part of the crew at the very least premature and somewhat distasteful.
If you have ever tried landing in a smoke mask particularly if you wear glasses you will know it is not easy. Maybe they could see clearly, but I would suggest the excellent spotters picture is hardly proof positive either way.
What the picture shows is the aircraft nose high just before B12, so with about 2800 metres of a 4000 metre runway remaining. There looks to be some nose down elevator, but what happened before and after is unclear. The aircraft came to a halt after a relatively short distance but a long way left of the runway. The left gear appears intact at this point, but from later pictures it is clear that there was a collapse.
This is Germany and the facts will come out soon enough. For the moment I think we can all agree that something was obviously broken and everyone survived which is a good result in itself.
Last edited by lederhosen; 18th May 2012 at 16:13.