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CPOA
Phil Vincent, LSA Jarrod Nieuwendaal and POA Phil Llewellyn
discuss plans with National Parks and Wildlife Rangers.
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In action - The bobcat makes it to the Barrenjoey Lighthouse
thanks to a Navy Sea King Helicopter and its crew.
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Navy
Sea King pilot LEUT Simon Hook found “enough room to swing a
cat” the other day.
Simon and his crew had been asked by the NSW National Parks
and Wildlife Service to lift a 2.2 tonne Bobcat from the carpark
at Palm Beach in Sydney’s north to a grass clearing beside the
historic Barrenjoey Lighthouse 100 metres above the sand.
The parks service is doing $250,000 of landscaping not only
to enhance the area for tourists but to improve the bushfire
protection for the light tower and the three, now vacated, lightkeeper’s
cottages.
There is no road access to the summit of the Barrenjoey Headland.
After getting the appropriate clearances by RAN management,
Simon and his crew of Shark 21, one of 817 Squadron’s seven
Sea Kings began planning for the unusual and demanding task.
“We came up by car to look over the sites,” he said.
On April 28, Simon flew Shark 21 to Palm Beach, alighting in
the carpark. Beside him was co-pilot LEUT Mike Waddell and behind
them crewmen CPO Phil Vincent, PO Phil llewellyn and LS Jarrod
Nieuwendaal.
The cargo area was packed with nets, slings, shackles, plastic
sheets and cord. Waiting for them was a small army of park workers
led by the Regional Manager/ Northern Sydney Region of the NPWLS,
Chris McIntosh.
There was also a knot of Simon’s family members led by mother
Julie.
Over the next 90 minutes the Navy and Parks personnel carefully
laid bags of concrete mix, rolls of safety barrier and starpickets
on to the nets brought from HMAS Albatross.
Tethers were attached to the bucket and backhoe of the Bobcat
while others were secured to the machine itself.
The concrete mix and accessories for the Bobcat were to go as
four loads to the summit. The Bobcat, because of its weight
and the need to lighten the all-up weight of the helicopter
by the consumption of fuel, was to be the final lift.
The operation began with Simon winching down one of his crewmen
to to act as the cargo releaser at the lighthouse. Over the
next hour he made five return flights to the car park to collect
the loads.
The operation was watched by a large crowd of residents, the
media and family members. Once completed, the aircraft flew
to RAAF Richmond where it did a “hot” refuel before returning
to Palm Beach to collect crewmen left on the ground and restow
equipment.
A repeat task is scheduled when the Bobcat has completed its
work and needs to be retrieved. Use of helicopters is a “must”
when working around the lighthouse.
Smaller Bolko and Squirrel helicopters operated by the Parks
Service have been used to bring 50 loads of vegetation, removed
to protect the complex from bushfires to trucks below.
The smaller aircraft will be used to take 50 tonnes of block
sandstone for use in paving and 50 tonnes of crushed sandstone
for fill, to the lighthouse over the next weeks.
Regional Manager McIntosh applauded the Navy for its help and
said that its contribution had enhanced the beautification and
fire protection for the 1880 built landmark.
On fine weekends between 500 to 1000 visitors walk the 1,500m
trek from the beach to the lighthouse (still a vital navigation
aid but now automatically illuminated).
