Did you catch buzz as copters swooped in?
IF YOU live in Hightown, you may have heard the buzz of helicopters coming and going last week from Altcar Training Camp over the last week.
The annual Royal Air Force (RAF) and Navy event is part of a vital National Security exercise to prove that the aircraft can be deployed to any part of the country if needed.
Commandant at Altcar Training Camp, Lieutenant Colonel Gordon Black, opened up the site on Friday, January 24, for the public to view the helicopters on the ground. Aircrew were also on standby to answer any questions they may have.
There were surveillance and combat attack helicopters such as Chinooks, the mighty Merlins and the Wildcats.
There was a very tight schedule, meaning the aircraft should have left early on Friday morning to return to the South. However, it was agreed with Lt-Col Black that they would stay an extra two hours to meet and greet the site’s visitors.
Despite the
terrible weather, it was an excellent turnout and local people had the opportunity to sit in the helicopters, while crew explained about aspects of the aircrafts and their roles, as much as they could within security limits.
Fifteen-year-old school boy, Owen Talbot, who attends Rainford High, hopes to be an RAF pilot one day. He came down from St Helens to take pictures of the helicopters arriving through the week and attended the open day.
He said: “I think it’s brilliant the exercise down here at Altcar, especially when you have seven aircraft taking off all together in formation.
“It’s not very often I get to see something like that, especially at such a low altitude.”
This is the third time Owen has visited Altcar for the exercise and also his third year as an avid aviation photographer.
He attends around 20 airshows a year up and down the UK, travelling more than 3,500 miles, and regularly goes spotting at Manchester airport.
He said: “It’s not very often we get a military exercise up this way, consisting of nearly 10 aircraft, so I wanted to get some images of it.
“I’m very interested in military aircraft and the RAF. I’m only 15 now, but hope one day to be a pilot in the RAF!”
To see more of Owen’s photography, please visit his Facebook page, Owen Talbot Photography, and www.owentalbotphoto graphystand.godaddy sites.com/