By Dongyun Kwon
A sculpture of The Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopter has finally found its home in Gippsland.
The Bell UH-1 Iroquois helicopter, commonly known as the Huey helicopter, is one of the iconic equipment that was well used during the Vietnam War.
Yarra Glen RSL was planning to erect a scale model of a Huey helicopter in McKenzie Reserve adjacent to the WWI Cenotaph along ANZAC Avenue in Yarra Glen to commemorate Vietnam War veterans as there are more than 60 veterans living around the Yarra Valley.
Yarra Glen RSL vice president George Miller, who built the scale model, said the Yarra Glen RSL and Yarra Ranges Council couldn’t reach an agreement regarding the installation of the helicopter despite about three years of negotiation.
“We couldn’t arrange it with the Yarra Ranges Council, so we thought ‘we’ll offer it to another RSL branch’ and Longwarry took up the offer,” he said.
“It’s going to be used for what it was built for.”
The local RSL branch decided to hand the sculpture over to Longwarry RSL in Gippsland because of its close association with the Vietnam Veterans Motorcycle Club located in the area.
The helicopter was sent on 12 August and has been mounted on a shipping container located near the Longwarry RSL clubrooms.
The container has also been painted to commemorate the Vietnam War.
