UA 816 stranded at YMML
 

Looks like the little devil got to United Airlines today at Melbourne.

Reportedly, UA nosewheel failed in some fashion and taxxied of the hard surface. I think that only one wheel remains on the taxi-way.

All the rest of the wheels are up to their axels with melbourne soil. UA recovery crew have checked into their hotels for some unkown time.

Expert QA staff, cheifs that rescued the bogged QA aircraft in Bangkok a couple years back are on the scene, and fear that they might run into the same problem that occured with QA acft that they might get bogged down in the low strength pavement.

Apparently, engineers have begun constructing a new hard surface to roll the airplane out!

some long days and night for the recovery team :*

The a/c is off the left side of a taxiway. The helicopter coverage in the news appears to show (probably) NLG skid marks first to the right, then to the left and off the taxiway. The vision from ground level behind the a/c seems to show the large black skidmarks between the gouge marks of the BLGs as they left the taxiway.

UA has plenty more 744's sitting in the desert, stored. They'll never miss it, and could replace it easily.

1985 strikebreaker at the controls