 |
|
A
Squirrel from 723 SQN on a visit to Wagga’s Willans Hill
Special School.
|
| |
| |
Excitement
and wonder were the expressions on the faces of students from
the Willans Hill Special School in Wagga Wagga when an AS 350B
Squirrel helicopter from 723 Squadron landed in their schoolyard.
The Squirrel, normally based at HMAS Albatross, flown by LCDR
Dom Cooper and PO Leigh Livingstone, was in Wagga as part of a
regular detachment dedicated to aircrew training.
Navy staff and trainees at RAAFSTT, RAAF Base Wagga, have had
an ongoing association with the school for about four years with
fund raising, provision of equipment and acting as escorts for
their annual graduation ball.
Willans Hill School caters for children across a wide range of
ages, five to 18, with both intellectual and physical disabilities.
It was obvious the children not only enjoyed themselves, but also
were thrilled to get involved with the aircraft and its crew.
For most it was the first time they had been so close to a helicopter
and they each took the opportunity to sit in it and have their
photographs taken.
The visit was seen by the assistant principal, Michael Woolbank,
as yet another way that Navy is showing its support for and input
to the school.
He said the mood around the school was quite ecstatic and the
occasion was important in giving the students an opportunity they
might otherwise not have had.
