Glenbrook Open Day
Nov. 11th, 2007 09:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
kiwisueToday was the local Glenbrook RAAF base open day. It was a lovely, fine day after a week of rain and cold so we were just in the mood for an outing.
RAAF Base Glenbrook is an unusual base - it's nowhere near an airfield, for a start. It's actually Headquarters Air Command and the original administration building (now the officer's mess) was the Lapstone Hill Hotel until 1949 when the Air Force bought the land. Lovely old building with fantastic views over western Sydney.
So there weren't any planes flying around. There was a Sikorsky helicopter, and an F-111 cockpit that looked very strange, chopped off from the body of the jet. The promised hot air balloon didn't show. But there was a military police dog team, and a bomb-disposal display and the air cadets sold sausage and steak sandwiches very cheap, so all in all it was an interesting couple of hours.
Pics under cut: click on the thumbnails to bring up the larger image.
We wandered around a bit, enjoying the weather before heading to our first display - bomb disposal.
The dark green robot is, I think, a Wheelbarrow, a type first developed in 1972 for use in Northern Ireland (so Yay!, Pros era *g*). I'm not sure how old this model is. And I haven't identified his little brother.
Inside, a woven kevlar bomb suit & visor.
Outside, shots of the officers mess and the view from that veranda. There's talk that the Glenbrook base may close soon - if so, it would be nice if someone could restore the building as a hotel again. It already has a swimming pool and tennis courts.
The Sikorsky, the Comms squadron display and the F-111 cockpit.
And finally, the Security Police with their dogs (good display) - and one annoyed masked plover who didn't like the way we were wandering all around its territory.
RAAF Base Glenbrook is an unusual base - it's nowhere near an airfield, for a start. It's actually Headquarters Air Command and the original administration building (now the officer's mess) was the Lapstone Hill Hotel until 1949 when the Air Force bought the land. Lovely old building with fantastic views over western Sydney.
So there weren't any planes flying around. There was a Sikorsky helicopter, and an F-111 cockpit that looked very strange, chopped off from the body of the jet. The promised hot air balloon didn't show. But there was a military police dog team, and a bomb-disposal display and the air cadets sold sausage and steak sandwiches very cheap, so all in all it was an interesting couple of hours.
Pics under cut: click on the thumbnails to bring up the larger image.
We wandered around a bit, enjoying the weather before heading to our first display - bomb disposal.
The dark green robot is, I think, a Wheelbarrow, a type first developed in 1972 for use in Northern Ireland (so Yay!, Pros era *g*). I'm not sure how old this model is. And I haven't identified his little brother.
 |
|
 |
Inside, a woven kevlar bomb suit & visor.
 |
|
 |
Outside, shots of the officers mess and the view from that veranda. There's talk that the Glenbrook base may close soon - if so, it would be nice if someone could restore the building as a hotel again. It already has a swimming pool and tennis courts.
 |
|
 |
The Sikorsky, the Comms squadron display and the F-111 cockpit.
 |
|
 |
|
 |
And finally, the Security Police with their dogs (good display) - and one annoyed masked plover who didn't like the way we were wandering all around its territory.
 |
|
 |
|
 |
|
 |
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2007-11-11 04:48 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2007-11-15 09:32 am (UTC)But the Wheelbarrow was interesting. I spent a little time reading up on 'Peter' Miller, the man who developed it. He got the idea from watching a powered wheelbarrow being used so that's what he called it. Not the 'Miller' machine or anything self-promoting. I liked that.
Oh, and watched the ending of 'No Stone" again too and took special note of the EOD robot (presume it was an early Wheelbarrow, because the other main types are American! Although why the bomb squad guy had to go in so close himself beats me - definitely not SOP!
no subject
Date: 2007-11-11 08:51 pm (UTC)We get our 6 degrees wherever we can.
no subject
Date: 2007-11-15 10:21 am (UTC)