Air Crane Lands on Pickup Truck

by Mark Huber
- June 15, 2023, 10:24 AM

An Erickson S-64E Skycrane used the bed of a pickup truck as a landing surface after its right gear detached in flight. (Photo: Erickson)An Erickson S-64E Skycrane heli-logging in Port Douglas, British Columbia, Canada, earlier this month used the bed of a pickup truck for support after its right main landing gear detached while entering a hover. According to the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, the right main landing gear oleo and strut assembly “decoupled from the helicopter (N172AC).” The gear fell to the ground in the service landing area without damage to equipment or personnel.

The helicopter’s two-man crew then performed a light landing using the nose and left main gear to onboard more fuel while keeping the right main gear housing off the ground. Flight and ground crews communicated and coordinated their actions via radio and hand signals. A pickup truck was then maneuvered into the place of the decoupled landing gear and the pilot landed the right gear housing structure into the bed of the vehicle. The maintenance crew inspected and replaced the right landing gear with a complete oleo, strut, and housing assembly.

In an e-mail to AIN, Erickson said a "Canadian Air-Crane recently made a non-standard landing after an oleo separated from their aircraft. Due to the quick thinking of their experienced crew, the aircraft was able to land safely. We are continuing to review the cause of this incident, and out of an abundance of caution we have issued a service bulletin advising operators to take appropriate actions to prevent similar occurrences."

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