One Tough "Flying Fossil"

Trouble with the right main gear forced the pilot of a vintage F-86 to bring the fighter in for a gear up landing Saturday during the River Region Air Show at Maxwell AFB near Montgomery, AL.

Pilot Wyatt Fuller was credited by the commander of the 42nd Air Base Wing at Maxwell, Col. Peter Costello, for executing a near-flawless emergency landing. Fuller brought the plane in on its nosewheel and left main gear.

“He did a perfect landing under the circumstances,” Costello told the Montgomery Advertiser. “There was very minimal damage to the airplane and the pilot is fine.”

The incident happened around lunchtime Saturday, and delayed aerial demonstrations by other aircraft participating in the show for about an hour and a half.

ANN reader Terry Wood, Jr. forwarded several pictures of the incident. The pictures were taken by show attendee Carl Wilcox, who graciously agreed to share them with the Aero-News audience.

As you can see, the F-86 -- dubbed "Flying Fossil" -- looks just a little worse for wear after the incident. Just goes to show that, while they built 'em tough back in the F-86's heyday during the Korean War... it always helps to have a skilled pilot at the controls, too.

FMI: www.au.af.mil/airshow/html/index.php