NORFOLK, Va. - Two aircraft were airlifted from Norfolk International Airport to the Aviation Institute of Maintenance Saturday morning.
The planes, a Sabreliner 80 jet and a Cessna 421 executive turbo prop aircraft, were too large to transport via roadway. Instead, the Erickson Company used two skycrane helicopters to transport both aircraft from the airport to the football field at the school's campus.
The aircraft will be used to give students hands-on learning opportunities.
"The thing is, the wingspan of these planes were too wide to take down city streets, and we didn't want to take them apart. We wanted the integrity of the aircraft for the students," said Joel English, vice president of operations at the Aviation Institute of Maintenance. "So we're lifting them with an enormous helicopter."
The whole trip only took around 15 minutes.
