How would they actually move that aircraft exactly an would it be damaged enough to be written off?
and
They were lifting it with airbags
I remember them using this with G-VSKY back in 1997, although that landed with gear up rather than have it fall off. Airbags can be transported more quickly than cranes capable of lifting the weight of an aircraft and presumably are favoured because it means faster removal if the crane doesn't happen to be close by.