In a heavily emotional day, more than 40 Vietnamese refugees & family visited HARS last week to pay respects to former Royal Australian Navy (RAN) Grumman S2G Tracker 851 who saved them from certain death after their boat's engine broke down and drifted for days with no food or water through the South China Sea nearly 40 years ago.Led by now-80-year old boat captain Nguyen Van Tam, the refugees bowed deeply then touched, kissed and saluted the HMAS Melbourne-based aircraft which was on its last mission on a stormy 21 June 1981 when flames were spotted from atop their floundering 13.7-metre vessel three miles away. Shepherded by Wessex helicopter Pedro 15, a massive naval rescue began with 99 thankful men, women & children pulled up aboard the aircraft carrier. Most settled in Sydney. Part of HARS collection of over 50 military & civilian aircraft since 2006, nobody knew of Tracker 851's amazing story -- and its continued presence in Australia -- until just two months ago when NZ-based maritime artist Darrell White working on a 40th anniversary painting was researching images and his brother Glenn, a HARS volunteer who actually works on the Tracker, discovered the connection. The Vietnamese refugees could hardly wait for the reunion with Tracker 851 hosted by Vietnam War correspondent & HARS volunteer Carl Robinson and wife Kim-Dung, former RAN pilots Owen Nicholls and PJ (Pete) Cannell and restorer Brian Kelly and who then visited our Wessex helicopter similar to Pedro 15.As word spreads, HARS is very hopeful of an even larger reunion of refugees, RAN veterans and others around the 40th Anniversary in June 2021. Reportage by Carl Robinson. Video by Tim May.
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Restored Australian Navy aircraft allows emotional reunion for Vietnamese refugees, 40 years after dramatic rescue
A group of Vietnamese refugees and their families have reconnected with a restored aircraft near south of Sydney, 40 years after their miraculous rescue from a "floundering" fishing boat that was helping them flee Vietnam's communist regime.
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