Fly Past

April 2018 FLYPAST 79

Troops board Bristol Belvedere HC.1 XG451. The helicopter was still owned by the manufacturer for
trial purposes, but later was taken on charge by 66 Squadron. Note the Bristol employee in white
overalls by the door and the civilian climbing down from the cockpit. This was the fourth day of
the exercise, when there was a series of helicopter demonstrations.

Amid the fl at Wiltshire landscape, 225 Squadron’s Westland Whirlwind HAR.2 XK988 ‘G’, hovers at

the Forward Maintenance Area (FMA) before picking up a netted load. In the background a sister

Whirlwind is undergoing maintenance and has its nose doors open. Later converted to a HAR.10,

XK988 lingered on in semi-preservation at Middle Wallop before being scrapped in 1999.

Westland Wessex HAS.1 XM301 was the sixth example built, being delivered in April 1959 to the

Royal Navy. Seen lifting a short wheelbase Land Rover, it was expended as a target at Foulness

gunnery ranges in June 1968.

Based on the Sikorsky S-56, the Westland Westminster was an ultimately unsuccessful design

that was intended to be a heavy lift transport. Using Sikorsky components, only two were built

• G-APLE (illustrated) and G-APTX. When funding for the project was lost, both helicopters were
  broken up sometime after 1960.