Unless we are looking at a sudden, simultaneous, never before experienced, depolymerization of the carbon fiber composite materials that make up the tail and engine pylons, we must look for another logical modality of failure.
The sudden deployment of the left engine Thrust Reverser fits the picture of what apparently happened... and the evidence seems to comfirm it.
As to whether it was sabotage (sabatuer cuts hydraulic line to thrust reverser just before take-off) or mechanical failure (the hydraulic line to the thrust reverser breaks because of age, wear, constriction, whatever) is another question.
Timing and location suggest sabotage. The investigators need to look closely at the left hand engine and specifically at the hydraulic lines to the thrust reverser.
In the previous 24 hours the plane underwent a low class maintenance inspection, I believe. Would the lines have been cut then? Would hydraulic fluid have been leaking from the plane when it was parked in front of the terminal? Why didn't the pilot see the leak in his walk around?
1. Easily;
2, Separately;
3. Consecutively.
4. The vertical fin and rudder, at the most critical stage of flight, failed due [Probably] to the acculmination of a series of small errors, break downs and failures which may or may not eventually include such contributing factors as bad design, material failure, fatigued components, previous maintenance damage -- etceteras;
When the Vertical fin failed at that potentially most unstable stage of flight -- and especially when bearing in mind that it did not leave cleanly and most certainly caused the aircraft to yaw violently -- all "yaw-damping" control was lost.
Once the aircraft began yawing under take-off and then increased to the "maximum power" setting the pilot [It was the F/O's leg, he handled the controls] called for, the potential that an assemetric thrust condition existed and/or was caused increased.
Once that happened it was only milliseconds before the gyroscopic effect of violent yawing on turbine rotors spinning in excess of 10,000 RPM caused the engines to be ripped from mounts not designed to handle such incredible forces applied to them at 90 degrees around the engines plane of rotation.
The forces were such it was as iff a giant hand had grabbed hold of the engines on a childs model an simply twisted them off.