Originally Posted by
Lead Balloon
So how do we account for so much (apparent) yaw to the left?
That is a very good question. If you review the dash-cam footage it looks like the airplane yaws through about 90° to the left in less than 2 seconds; as the airplane initially climbs into view it appears to be nose-up, climbing and oriented properly with the direction of flight along the extended centre line then very quickly we see it in profile, nose-down and descending. The flight path illustrated in the ATSB preliminary report might be a gently curving arc but the airplane appears to be oriented obliquely to it in the lateral axis; both the dash-cam and the the alignment of the nose and left landing gear strike marks bear that out. Unfortunately it's difficult, if not impossible, to determine the rudder position from the dash-cam footage.