11:00 News channel 8 showed a VERY clear still photo of a trim-tab coming off the plane’s tail just before the pilot lost full control.
The trim-tab is not that large a part, it is part of the horizontal stabilizer.
Apparently, losing it made this plane uncontrollable.
So, it seems fairly clear that this was a mechanical failure at racing speed.
No doubt the NTSB will have more to say, in several months.
I’m surprised people have not focused more on the picture of the aircraft in a dive... seems to have fairly good detail, and I cannot make out a horizontal stabilizer??? Forget the trim tab... forget the elevator... all I see are some marks on the aft fuselage where it all should be. Combine that with the earlier pics of the trim tab separating, the trim tab missing and this pic, and it could be catastrophic aeroelastic flutter. The NTSB will be looking at the modifications and maintenance records for sure... all very tragic. prayers to all involved.