Brings up a question I have. Granted the captain has the final say, but what would the typical protocol/procedure be with the engines in a situation like this? Would you shut them down immediately once you were committed to the landing to minimize possibility of injesting anything coming off the nose gear assembly?
I am only a GA pilot, so take this for what its worth: In the GA world, we are constantly drilled with the concept that once an emergency occurs, the aircraft is owned by the insurance company. In other words, do what needs to be done to save the people; do not do something silly to endanger the people by attempting to save the aircraft.
There have been more than a few GA landing-gear-failed-to-fully-deploy-and-lock emergencies where the pilot attempted to save the engine/prop by shutting down the engine on short final. In some of these cases, the pilot lost airspeed awareness and stalled the aircraft, nosing in from 100 feet or so. These accidents are tragic but avoidable.
In the case of the Airbus, I would speculate that there was no attempt to shut down the engines on short final.