OK, a simple one - what are ‘cross tubes’ and what would the implication of their being ratated aft by the force of gound impact be?
Sounds to me that you’re talking about landing gear. For skid gear helicopters (e.g. UH-1) the cross tube is the landing gear member that connects from a skid on one side, under the belly (attached to the fuselage) and down to the other skid tube.
If the “rotated aft on impact” then the gear would collapse, the aircraft would come to rest on it’s belly.