When it comes to a ditching (water landing in the airlines) you have to be prepared BEFORE it happens . For those of us that went thru military water survival most of us had the chance to experience the "helo dunker" at least once every four years no matter what type of aircraft you flew . The easy part (one of 4 trips on the E ticket ride) is to strap yourself into a seat and they just drop the gizmo into the water in the upright position . You unstrap and crawl out the nearest exit . Pretty simple but , "here's the rest of the story!" The 3rd and 4th "rides" you wear block out goggles so you have no visual reference to make your escape , if that's not enough the last trip in the fun zone you wear the block out goggles , they drop the dunker and then rotate the whole unit upside down ! Now you unstrap and using only your keen sense of direction you unstrap and make your way out , all the while getting kicked in the face and body by several flailing flight boots !
My point is , have a plan of action BEFORE you set out across the wet stuff , properly secure your gear so it doesn't become an obstacle AND brief your pax on what to do to make a successful egress . PANIC is NOT your friend ! >:( Clipping a wing or the gear might work ? It did for the aircraft in question . Will it work for a T-18...don't know . https://youtu.be/JvwXCKluUJc
If the you tube link doesn't work just go to you tube and type in helo dunker water survival and you will find more than enough videos to raise your awareness to new levels !
RB
BaBaLu