[Wings-n-Wind]

Gravity....concur...
Gravity is especially unforgiving if the aircraft is not correctly configured for takeoff near max weights....
(Recall NWA DC-9 out of DTW a few years back.... inadvertently took-off with flaps/slats retracted with very fatal results)

And alas... these carriers DAL/COMAIR -- operating in a bankruptcy environment.....

Too many cost-cuts can be quite expensive (and sad...)

Primary bankrupt air carrier symptoms:
(1)Too much maintenance with a pencil instead of a wrench...
(2) Cut to the bone any extra aircrew training cycles...

"If the minimum wasn't good enough... it wouldn't be the minimum...etc.."....mentality...

Very sad indeed...

[tupac]

Wow! It's a wonder that airline travel is so safe with all those problems! How do they do it?

[RaceBannon]

I work on GG-4's and FT-8's now, and the story I hear from the guys on the flight side, or former flight side, they use parts from local hardware stores commonly.