The US Navy (US Navy) completed the rescue of a Boeing P-02 Poseidon jet on Saturday (8) that overtook the track and got stuck in a coral. The maritime patrol aircraft had been in the water since 21/11.
The rescue operation for the military 737 began at around 06:30 am on Saturday and lasted more than 12 hours. According to the Navy, divers placed inflatable rollers to float the aircraft, which was carefully lifted and taken to the edge of the runway. At around 19:00 pm the last part of the aircraft, the nose landing gear, was completely out of the water.
“Our team went through detailed planning to develop the best course of action to get the P-8 out of the bay as quickly and safely as possible.”, said the leader of the rescue operation, Rear iral Kevin Lenox. “The process lasted 13 hours. Most of the day was spent making minor adjustments to the rolling bags and aircraft position to minimize impact on the coral strip adjacent to the shore. Sometimes it took us an hour to move the aircraft five feet.”
The following day, the military changed the tires on the landing gear and carried out an initial cleaning of the aircraft, which is now being evaluated by mechanics and an accident investigation team. With the P-8 on solid ground, the military can better determine the causes of the accident and assess the condition of the aircraft for repairs. The Navy spent about $1,5 million recovering the P-8.
“Once on the ground, the aircraft will be inspected and monitored until it is towed to a lavatory, where it will be cleaned with fresh water to begin the aircraft recovery and repair process.”, said navy officers. “The sink is a designated area with segregated drains that prevents rinse water from entering the bay.”
