Perched precariously on the back of Ed’s bike, we sneakily shot past the queues of traffic one Saturday morning last month to join the hoards of helicopter enthusiasts at the fourth HeliMotril festival on Playa Azucenas. And what a show it turned out to be!
As a repressed helicopter pilot myself I was pretty mesmerised as, one by one, the great machines circled the crowds and touched down right in front of us.
On display were a range of private, civil and government owned ‘copters including two R44 Robinson’s from Alicante, a Rotorway from Málaga that was built over five years by a father and son team and a Gazelle owned by a British Lord and flown over from the UK by the Lordship himself.
Ten multicoloured autogiros from the ELA Aviation Company also swung by and the kids (and some of the grown–ups) delighted in clambering all over the machines they rarely come into such close contact with. Organised by the AAAO (Orion Andalusian Aeronautical Association) we managed to grab a hold of their representative, José Miguel Pérez Juárez, who was quite clearly buzzing himself at the success and participation of so many fans, to find out a little more. He told the Seaside Gazette that the idea of the show was to try and get rid of the notion that helicopters are only for the elite and to make them more accessible to the general public (here, here!) The event climaxed on the beach with a rescue simulation exercise performed by an ex-service Sea Rescue Helicopter. Chopper-tastic, roll on next year!
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