Originally Posted by
prospector
Are you saying that the quoted figures are incorrect?
The impression I am getting is that it is OK to go outside the aft limits because it had been done before.
But when you go so far outside the aft limits it bites you, then it must have been something else.
What is going to be proven by digging up wreckage after being buried for years? What extra damage to components could have occurred during the burial and the uncovering these parts.
If for example, it is the single bolt holding the control column that failed, being buried in the ground for that long will lead to corrosion of the fracture surface making it very difficult to determine the mode of fracture.
Prospector sit in the back with a full load of tandems and rigs, and see what is the furthest you can move unrestrained.