Thousands See Display By Helicopter In Hagley Park

Press, Volume XCI, Issue 27670, 28 May 1955, Page 8

Thousands See Display By Helicopter In Hagley Park

The helicopter from H.M.A.S. Sydney was to have given its public display at 2 pjn., but the hour was changed to 4 o’clock so that, after school, it could be attended by children. The decision was the most popular of Navy week; which can already be counted an outstanding success because of the thousands who went yesterday to North Hagley Park. Lieutenant J. O’Farrell and his ob- 1 server are the only persons likely to know how many gathered. Tor only from the air would it be possible to see how thickly the park was covered. Between 3 p.m. and 4 pjn. the crowd was spread fairly evenly from the Riccarton gates right over "to Park terrace. Hundreds of cars lined both sides of the north park’s whole perimeter, many double parked on to the footpath in Deans avenue, and scores could find space only under the oak trees opposite Millbrook reserve. Recalling that on its initial flight over Christchurch for Rear-Admiral H. M. Burrell to pay his official calls, and on Wednesday when it carried newspaper representatives, the helicopter landed fairly close to Helmore’s lane, hundreds waited there yesterday. The early comgrs had seen a roped-off enclosure almost opposite Bishop’s Court and waited in the ultimately best posiWhen the helicopter arrived on time from its circuits over the suburbs, most of the crowd had to run about half a mile from the other end of the park. While they ran. they saw Lieutenant O’Farrell hover his machine over the enclosure, then drop almost below the heads of the nearest watchers and skilfully gyrate the helicopter round its main rotor. It seemed that the rotor was standing still while the machine itself twisted round this central pivot. Seeing that the full crowd was still running to the display ring. Lieutenant O’Farrell then made wide circles—climbing at the startling angle of 45 degrees, diving just as steeply, waltzing. racing at the full 120 miles an hour, and then hovering to await the

running people. The inevitable dog raced fearlessly under and round the machine on the ground. Helicopters’ uncanny control was then demonstrated. Several landings were made in the machine’s own length after hovering a yard from the ground. Then it would leap to 50 feet. A belt was lowered by the helicopter’s winch to pick up a sailor. He was lifted a yard or two and then, like an auctioneer displaying a string of onions the helicopter dangled him in the face of the watchers along each of the four sides of the square with military turns at the corners. The helicopter rose to perhaps 50 feet, and the sailor was lowered to the ground and then hoisted up and aboard. Descending for the last time, the pilot waved through the dome of his cockpit, was answered by hundreds of children, whose idol he had become, tossed the machine high in the air, and tilted to wave from the open doorway. The quarter-hour display had such variety that it seemed an hour, and the helicopter was back on the Sydney soon after 4.15 p.m. The crowd had not completely cleared an hour later. Hundreds had to retrace their steps toward Riccarton and Fendalton. After 4.30 a.m. a solid line of halted cars stretched from the Carlton Mill bridge back to the Fendalton road junction of Deans avenue. Some motorists decided to turn back and get out through Fendalton. They waited until 4.45 p.m. before they could get across Holmwood road. In the city the usual Friday evening congestion was complicated by hundreds of cars and equal numbers of bicycles trying to go east from the park. Not since the Royal visit have such crowds congregated near the middle of Christchurch. Before giving its demonstration in Hagley Park the helicopter flew to Harewood to give a short display. It landed a rating on the tarmac in front of the engineering hangar of the National Airways Corporation and then, from the air, drew him up to the aircraft on the end of a rope by winch.