You'd be pleasantly surprised to know that when the Boeing Company tests a new development wing section for new airliner programs, an exact working prototype of the wing is placed in a massive jig with which hydraulic rams apply simulated wing loads. This is done until the wing fails entirely and catastrophically - and with a tremendous bang. When the 777 wing was put through the paces, its wing tip was deflected close to thirty feet before it was no longer 'flying' and broke apart. If you can find a copy of the PBS documentary of the making of the triple seven, a segment of the film shows this very event.