Hell of a save
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Hell of a save
Bryan-based medical helicopter with partial landing gear lands safely on mattresses | The Eagle | Bryan/College Station, Texas - The Eagle
A Bryan-based medical helicopter missing half its landing gear came to a cushy rest on top of three mattresses during an emergency landing at the San Antonio International Airport, where the aircraft was diverted after it struck a cellphone tower early Sunday.
Around 3:30 a.m., a PHI Air Medical chopper carrying one patient and three crew members collided with a tower near Interstate 35 and Binz-Engleman Road, knocking off one of the aircraft’s two skids, PHI spokesman Brad Deutser said.
“Skids give you the balance to land on two feet, so to speak,” Deutser said.
The crew on the helicopter were part of Air Med 12 based out of St. Joseph’s hospital in Bryan, said Tim Ottinger, spokesman for the hospital.
“We recognize the extraordinary work of the crew, who were prepared and well-trained to respond to this incident,” he said. “PHI Air Medical is working closely with authorities and FAA officials as they investigate this incident.
Privacy laws prevented officials from sharing details about the patient, who was being treated at The Med in College Station.
According to San Antonio police, the impact occurred close to the helicopter’s destination, the San Antonio Military Medical Center. The aircraft was directed to the airport, where San Antonio firefighters under the direction of Capt. Kevin Campbell were tasked with landing the damaged helicopter.
Campbell said the pilot, communicating through the airport’s control tower, asked if firefighters had anything to put under the chopper so it could land.
“He knew if he landed, that he would crash,” Campbell said. “He suggested mattresses, and I told Engine 23 to grab three or four mattresses from the dorm. We also brought out weights from our weight room to hold the mattresses down.”
Campbell said the aircraft hovered for a short time above a space between two taxiways, but the pilot worried that he’d run out of gas.
“It was tense for a little bit,” Campbell said, “but we stacked the mattresses and weighted them down with four, 45-pound plate weights and he landed on top of it. It worked great.”
Deutser said all four people on board the helicopter — a patient and three crew members traveling from Bryan to San Antonio Military Medical Center — were uninjured in the landing. An AirLife helicopter then flew the patient and a flight paramedic from the PHI aircraft to SAMMC.
“It took extraordinary action; there was great focus and great skill by the crew, as well as ground crews, to ensure there was a safe landing,” Deutser said. “Some really talented people made this happen.”
Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Lynn Lunsford said using mattresses in the emergency landing is “what you’d call fast-thinking.” The FAA is now looking into what caused the crash, he said, adding that the investigation will look into whether or not the cell tower had proper lighting and the altitude at which the helicopter was traveling.
The aircraft, a Bell 407 rotorcraft owned by PHI, is permanently housed at St. Joseph.
“There’s a lot that we don’t know,” said Deutser, “but there were no injuries, and that’s the most important part.”
Campbell said he’d never heard of using mattresses in a helicopter’s emergency landing.
“That was all we had, and we were glad it worked out,” he said. “But no, I don’t think I ever want to do that again.”
A Bryan-based medical helicopter missing half its landing gear came to a cushy rest on top of three mattresses during an emergency landing at the San Antonio International Airport, where the aircraft was diverted after it struck a cellphone tower early Sunday.
Around 3:30 a.m., a PHI Air Medical chopper carrying one patient and three crew members collided with a tower near Interstate 35 and Binz-Engleman Road, knocking off one of the aircraft’s two skids, PHI spokesman Brad Deutser said.
“Skids give you the balance to land on two feet, so to speak,” Deutser said.
The crew on the helicopter were part of Air Med 12 based out of St. Joseph’s hospital in Bryan, said Tim Ottinger, spokesman for the hospital.
“We recognize the extraordinary work of the crew, who were prepared and well-trained to respond to this incident,” he said. “PHI Air Medical is working closely with authorities and FAA officials as they investigate this incident.
Privacy laws prevented officials from sharing details about the patient, who was being treated at The Med in College Station.
According to San Antonio police, the impact occurred close to the helicopter’s destination, the San Antonio Military Medical Center. The aircraft was directed to the airport, where San Antonio firefighters under the direction of Capt. Kevin Campbell were tasked with landing the damaged helicopter.
Campbell said the pilot, communicating through the airport’s control tower, asked if firefighters had anything to put under the chopper so it could land.
“He knew if he landed, that he would crash,” Campbell said. “He suggested mattresses, and I told Engine 23 to grab three or four mattresses from the dorm. We also brought out weights from our weight room to hold the mattresses down.”
Campbell said the aircraft hovered for a short time above a space between two taxiways, but the pilot worried that he’d run out of gas.
“It was tense for a little bit,” Campbell said, “but we stacked the mattresses and weighted them down with four, 45-pound plate weights and he landed on top of it. It worked great.”
Deutser said all four people on board the helicopter — a patient and three crew members traveling from Bryan to San Antonio Military Medical Center — were uninjured in the landing. An AirLife helicopter then flew the patient and a flight paramedic from the PHI aircraft to SAMMC.
“It took extraordinary action; there was great focus and great skill by the crew, as well as ground crews, to ensure there was a safe landing,” Deutser said. “Some really talented people made this happen.”
Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Lynn Lunsford said using mattresses in the emergency landing is “what you’d call fast-thinking.” The FAA is now looking into what caused the crash, he said, adding that the investigation will look into whether or not the cell tower had proper lighting and the altitude at which the helicopter was traveling.
The aircraft, a Bell 407 rotorcraft owned by PHI, is permanently housed at St. Joseph.
“There’s a lot that we don’t know,” said Deutser, “but there were no injuries, and that’s the most important part.”
Campbell said he’d never heard of using mattresses in a helicopter’s emergency landing.
“That was all we had, and we were glad it worked out,” he said. “But no, I don’t think I ever want to do that again.”
I cant see me getting lots of 
congratulations if i ripped the wheels off my 109 but then managed to " very skillfully " land it on a mattress 
( Is it more difficult to land on a mattress than say a pinnacle landing or toe in ??!!!!)
congratulations if i ripped the wheels off my 109 but then managed to " very skillfully " land it on a mattress ( Is it more difficult to land on a mattress than say a pinnacle landing or toe in ??!!!!)
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The Pilot probablt saw the "youtube" incident which, IIRC, involved a Harrier and a pile of mattresses, amazing what the little grey cells store away ,to recover in times of need.
Avoid imitations
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The German Army used to keep supplies of mattresses at their helicopter bases, exactly for this purposes. They were kept in bunkers out on the airfield.
We used to carry a sandbag plan on the aircraft for the same reason. In the Cold War days, when sandbags were more readily available, that was.
I reckon I'd be sacked if I knocked the gear off on a ground obstruction, no matter what happened afterwards.
We used to carry a sandbag plan on the aircraft for the same reason. In the Cold War days, when sandbags were more readily available, that was.
I reckon I'd be sacked if I knocked the gear off on a ground obstruction, no matter what happened afterwards.
I recall the P&O S-76 tried to land on some mattresses on the QE2 a few years ago. Unintentially though.....
http://www.aaib.gov.uk/cms_resources...LC%2012-94.pdf
Seriously, though, it's worth bearing in mind that there is the potential to cause damage to the aircraft from unrestrained mattresses which may make a bad day get even worse! It's something I mention in our checklist drills for 'Undercarriage will not extend'
http://www.aaib.gov.uk/cms_resources...LC%2012-94.pdf
Seriously, though, it's worth bearing in mind that there is the potential to cause damage to the aircraft from unrestrained mattresses which may make a bad day get even worse! It's something I mention in our checklist drills for 'Undercarriage will not extend'
) that lost a skid many years ago.
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Worked well for an AAC Lynx or Gazelle(can't remember which, 
) that lost a skid many years ago.
) that lost a skid many years ago.
Then we had a quick release emergency only skids as GSE.
PHI Air Medical 407 Emergency Landing in Maryland After Hitting Mobile Phone Mast
Last Sunday morning PHI Med 12 based in Bryan who is in a partnership there with St. Joseph’s Hospital had picked up a patient near Bryan. That patient was being transported to San Antoniio’s Military Hospital.
As the pilot was getting ready to make the 3:30 am landing at the hospital helipad he struck a 155’ cellphone tower across the freeway from the pad.
The collision with the tower ripped a skid off of the helicopter.The pilot radioed San Antonio International Airport and declared an emergency.
From Air Traffic Audio:
AIRMED 12: "I need to declare an emergency and move straight to the airport."
TOWER: "Airmed 12, roger. Fly heading 3-0-5. Say nature of emergency and what can we do for you?"
AIRMED 12: "I hit a tower. I’ve broken a skid on the left side and I’ve got a patient on board and two crew members. It was at that point airport officials and first responders began to look for the best place to set the damaged helicopter down. With one skid damaged the helicopter could loose balance when landing and crash."
TOWER TAPES RELEASED OF PHI AIR MEDICAL EMERGENCY LANDING LAST WEEKEND*|*Montgomery County Police Reporter
Last Sunday morning PHI Med 12 based in Bryan who is in a partnership there with St. Joseph’s Hospital had picked up a patient near Bryan. That patient was being transported to San Antoniio’s Military Hospital.
As the pilot was getting ready to make the 3:30 am landing at the hospital helipad he struck a 155’ cellphone tower across the freeway from the pad.
The collision with the tower ripped a skid off of the helicopter.The pilot radioed San Antonio International Airport and declared an emergency.
From Air Traffic Audio:
AIRMED 12: "I need to declare an emergency and move straight to the airport."
TOWER: "Airmed 12, roger. Fly heading 3-0-5. Say nature of emergency and what can we do for you?"
AIRMED 12: "I hit a tower. I’ve broken a skid on the left side and I’ve got a patient on board and two crew members. It was at that point airport officials and first responders began to look for the best place to set the damaged helicopter down. With one skid damaged the helicopter could loose balance when landing and crash."
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I'm not sure where the headline there came from Savoia, but Bryan and San Antonio are both in Texas. Maryland would have been quite the diversion. 
(My guess is the that the Montgomery County Police Reporter is from MD? Neither Bryan nor SA are in Montgomery County, Texas.)
Great pix in that article, though.
(My guess is the that the Montgomery County Police Reporter is from MD? Neither Bryan nor SA are in Montgomery County, Texas.)
Great pix in that article, though.
