Defence Force brings out the big guns
Thousands of people lined the streets in the heart of Palmerston North to watch a military parade with bayonets fixed, drums beating, bands playing, colours flying and swords drawn.
Saturday’s celebrations were to commemorate and reconfirm the 1956 charters that granted Linton Military Camp and the Ohakea air force base the right to parade in the city.
About 100 soldiers and airmen from Linton and Ohakea marched in the parade, which began outside Cafe Express and made its way around The Square past the cenotaph.
Ohakea base commander Group Captain Nick Olney said the idea to have the joint events came through a meeting between the two camps. ‘‘It was an opportunity for us to demonstrate to our local community how joint we are.’’
Zandra Turner from the Palmerston North events team estimated 3000 people packed out The Square to see the artillarypunctuated orchestral performance that capped the day’s celebrations at 5.30pm.
It was the first time both services had jointly marked the charters bestowed upon Linton and and Ohakea 60 years ago, and the first time the 1812 Overture had been conducted by the military in Palmerston North.
Olney said the army tended to have a stronger presence in town than Ohakea, so they had been looking forward to being seen on the ground. ‘‘Ohakea has gone through a bit of a restructure in the last couple of years,’’ he said. ‘‘It’s a chance to reconnect with our community.’’
Palmerston North mayor Grant Smith said the Defence Force provided hundreds of jobs in Manawatu. ‘‘With all the building around Linton, Ohakea and the Defence College, there will be hundreds of millions of dollars spent here over the next six to 10 years, with considerably more to come.’’