Hundreds turned out to the Greenlea Rescue Helicopter open day at its base at Taupō Airport on Sunday to see the new H145 helicopter, take part in activities and chat with representatives from emergency services on site.
Aircrew officer Mark Bond said the response had been awesome and thanked the team for their effort in equipping the helicopter with a new rescue winch.
It had been a massive campaign, he said.
"It's good to get it here for the public and show them."
Left: Nana Lisa Feck and Blaire Hogan (6) Centre: Romi Rendel (8) holding her little sister Tevel (2) in the rescue helicopter cockpit Right: Sunday's Greenlea Rescue Helicopter open day had hundreds in attendance
The new H145 helicopter represents a major upgrade for the rescue service. "It's far and above our old helicopter," Bond explained in a recent interview. "We had a quite a very old helicopter in the past. This one has got massively upgraded avionics capable of a whole lot of different things."
As the aircrew officer responsible for operating the winch, Bond is particularly impressed with the new equipment funded by community donations totaling over $600,000. "I've had a chance to do some training on that winch. It's an awesome bit of kit. It's on the same side of the pilot on the right hand side which means that we're both able to see the same things as we're running into a scene to pick up a patient. It's a lot faster and works extremely well."
There had been some major equipment upgrades over the years since 2018 when he started with the rescue helicopter, said Bond, whose roles include operating the winch, keeping an eye on safety on the helicopter, as well as occasionally being on hand in the cockpit to help the pilot or assisting the critical care paramedics.
While the new helicopter brings advanced technology, Bond noted they still operate under visual flight rules. The service is looking at training pilots in instrument flight rules in the future, which would further enhance their capabilities in challenging conditions.
The previous helicopter hasn't been retired - it's been relocated to Gisborne where it remains operational.
As well as a chance to get up close and personal with the rescue helicopter and crew, the open day featured live demonstrations, face painting, games, and giveaways.
