Sea King helicopter towed down street after emergency landing

Commuters stuck in traffic in Eastern Passage, N.S., last evening may have been surprised to see a Canadian Sea King helicopter was the cause of the backlog.

The helicopter made an emergency landing in a field near the small Nova Scotia communitybefore being towed down a street, causing some traffic headaches during rush hour.

"It's in fine shape. It just looked like it may have had a little bit of fire damage," said Naomi Robinson, who lives nearby.

Air Force spokesmanAlexandreCadieuxsays the six-person crew was returning from a training flight when it had an in-flight emergency.

A sensor in the gear box detected an anomaly.The crew landed at the helipad atHartlandPoint Golf Course and thechopper was then towed to 12 WingShearwater.

No one was injured.

The military's fleet of Sea Kings isnow 50 years old.

The plan to replace the choppers which fly from the decks of Canadian warships is years behind schedule, at least $200 millionover budget andbeset with technical glitches.

The governmentannounced this summer it had finally signed a renegotiated contractwith helicopter-maker Sikorsky for 28 new CH-148 Cyclone helicopters at a cost of $7.6billion.

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