Rex plane looses a wheel...

[Paul C.]

Originally Posted by NickN

The news report gives the impression the wheel came off the aircraft in-flight between Orange and Sydney. Is that possible? I thought the SAAB landing gear retracted and was sealed internally?

The wheel is not perfectly sealed. Two lids help streamline the aircraft during flight. I spose the wheel fell off inside the enclosure and when they opened up the landing gear it fell out completley on approach into Sydney so I wonder where the wheel ended up?, maybe on someone's head?. Ahh, don't worry because Rex has a spare Saab sitting at WGA so there's plenty of parts here.

[NickN]

Could be floating around in Botany Bay as well.

Sounds like an unusual event thought.

[Nigel C]

Originally Posted by Paul C.

The wheel is not perfectly sealed. Two lids help streamline the aircraft during flight. I spose the wheel fell off inside the enclosure and when they opened up the landing gear it fell out completley on approach into Sydney so I wonder where the wheel ended up?, maybe on someone's head?. Ahh, don't worry because Rex has a spare Saab sitting at WGA so there's plenty of parts here.

My understanding was that they knew they had lost the wheel on departure from Orange, and subsequently declared a local standby for arrival into Sydney.

[Paul C.]

This is Rex's first 340A freighter conversion. Sold to Bridges Worldwide.

[Adam P.]

Disregard, I see it's on the website now.

[Matt Southwell]

the wheel came off just after rotation, it then travelled across another runway over a fence through a small paddock and over another fence coming to rest on a road.
My old flying instructor alerted them to it, as he was sitting at the holding point as the saab rotated in front of him.

[NickN]

Thats a big adventure for a relatively small tyre. Lucky nobody was hurt.